A Cast Aside Story
by x.faith.x23
Summary: When two young people get seperate during the war search to find eachother in hopes to bring peace by killing their common enemy. But after all these years will they still have the same views on life and eachother? Erik/OC
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I do not own x-men at all I just have an imagination that feeds of it.**_

The gunshot rang loud in my ears and I squeezed Erik's 15 year old hand for support. Fear took over my entire body as my heart pounded heavily against my chest with every single breath. My whole body was screaming with pain and fear at the thought of Erik's dead mother poisoned my 9 year old mind. Erik's grip tightened around my small hand making me look up to meet his terrified eyes.

It had only been one year ago when I came across Erik. Both of my mutants parents were murdered in order for me to be taken to a man called Klaus Schmitt so he could examine my mutation. Ever since I was born I was gifted with the mutation to manipulate and control fire as well as having telepathic skills. Unfortunately that meant my appearance would be different as well.

I stared down at a metal bell that sat obediently on Klaus Schmitt's desk, located right next to the chocolate that he had previously offered both Erik and I. I caught my reflection in the silver metal and narrowed my eyes to observe my heartbroken visage. There was no sparkle of life present in my deep red eyes, no color tainting my pale cheeks tattooed with red swirls and no trace of a smile. My long straight red hair framed my face, pulled back by a black headband. My gaze followed the path of the teardrops flowing from my dark red eyes, down onto my marked skin.

With courage I felt my reflection and fixed my eyes on the man who was responsible for the death of Erik's mother. He sat there calmly, with both hands clasped together resting on the dark wooden table. I hated this made with a passion. Every second of the day his presence sent toxic waves into my mind, effecting my emotions. Schmitt pushed forward the chocolate with his right hand and waited to see if either Erik or I would respond. Instead, Erik let his fingers slip from mine and he raised his bent head to face the monster that sat in front of us.

My eyes widened at Erik expression. His emotions were clearly displayed across he is face, allowing anyone to read them. I took a step back in slight fear and ran to his mother who lay dead on the floor. I dropped to my knees helplessly and placed a soft kiss on her forehead before closing her eyes, allowing her to escape this nightmare of a life.

"Erik…" I began in German but stopped when I saw the metal bell being crushed. I stood up and straightened my standard green army dress. I knew that Erik was a mutant. I could read his mind and saw his past memories, what happened with the Iron Gate. It didn't surprise me and it didn't surprise Schmitt either. But unlike me, Schmitt was ecstatic. He waved his arms in the air, not afraid to show his lack of emotion for Erik's dead mother.

"Yes. Wonderful!" He exclaimed in German.

Suddenly all of Erik's emotions were released. What he had been holding in for so long was out. And it scared me. Erik let out a gut wrenching scream and I watched in horror as cabinet files were crushed and all the metal objects in the room shook. "Excellent!' Schmitt exclaimed again, showing no signs of anger at the destruction Erik was causing.

Erik then turned towards the two guards behind me and crushed there metal helmets into their sculls, making them let our gut wrenching screams which I copied.

"Erik!" I yelled crouching down next to the dead guards. "Erik Please stop!" I yelled over his screaming. But he didn't stop. Instead he turned towards the one place that he and I were most afraid of. The labs where mutants were experimented on; where Schmitt and his scientists would use us as lab rats. Everything metal on the whole floor went flying and basically all equipment was destroyed.

I stood up and wrapped my shivering form in my own arms. Schmitt was laughing with joy as Erik stepped closer to the glass, his arms still outstretched.

When Erik reached the glass door and wall, he seemed to deflate. He lowered his arms and went quiet, metal things hitting the floor all around us. With the destruction done, he turned into a scared boy. I watched his shoulders shake and before Schmitt could reach him I rushed to his side. His wet face looked down at me and I wrapped my arms around his thin waist, resting my head in his shirt and clung onto him. An arm of his went around my waist and he shook violently with both sadness and pain.

I heard Schmitt sigh and he came to Erik's other side, putting his arm around his shoulders and looked at the damage he had done. I could feel Erik stiffen in my hold and I adverted my gaze to the toxic fingers that Shaw placed on Erik's shoulder.

"Outstanding Erik." He said smiling down at Erik. "So we unlock your gift with anger." He opened the glass door and we all walked in. "Anger and Pain." Schmitt stopped and looked around the room before looking down to Erik and then to me who clung helplessly onto Erik. He smiled. "You, Zoe and me." He laughed. "We're going to have a lot of fun together." After a moment of silence, Schmitt patted Erik on the shoulder and placed in his hand the metal coin that Erik could not move before leaving Erik and I in our room full of misery.

"Erik." I pulled away and stood infornt of him and took both of his hands in mine. "Erik you will get through this." Erik laughed helplessly and brushed some of my hair behind my ear. "Trust me when I say that we will always have each other in this hell of a world." I paused and looked around the room. "And one day me and you." I let go of his hands and placed then on his shoulders. "Me and you will combine our powers and kill Schmitt."

"Together?" He asked. I sighed and hugged my best friend tightly.

"Together." I repeat and clung onto him like the world depended on it.

* * *

If only it was like that. Erik and I together forever. On my 11th Birthday I was taken away. Over the course of years I was slowly developing into a young woman. With my spare time, I was able to teach myself how to ice skating during the winters charmed by Jack Frost. Schmitt also took it upon himself to teach me the violin to please his incoming guests. But most of my time was spent lying down on a metal table, looking up into a blinding light and being injected with all sorts of liquids.

Erik had also changed. He was now 17 and grew more and more handsome every day, causing me to fall more in love with him. I knew that in reality I was just a child compared to him, but my heart and fallen for him. Erik and I bonded in a way that no one could ever describe, we had a brother and sister relationship but in the center of my heart I wished it could be more.

So, on my 11th birthday I was to be taken away from Erik to me examined more closely. Schmitt told me that he wanted to see if my mutation was transferable and the only way of finding that out would be to move locations. To a location where Erik would not be.

When the news of my departure reached Erik I could see that he did love me, though my guess was only in a brotherly way. His face clenched and his fists copied. I sighed and walked towards him and looked up into his grey eyes.

"Erik."

"I won't let them take you." He protested. I could feel his anger and alarm. He raised his arm to let loose his power but I quickly pushed it down, cupped his chin and did something that took all of my courage. I stood on my tip toes and pressed a soft kiss on his lips, and before he could react I pulled away.

"Someday we will find each other. And we will kill Schmitt. And maybe have our happy ending." Tears spilled from my eyes and he wiped them away.

"I could kill them you know."

"No!" I said firmly. "Killing them makes you no better Erik." He sighed and ran his fingers through his brown hair.

"I will find you." He said as the guard took my arm and roughly pulled me towards the car. "I will always find you." And that was the last I ever saw of my beloved Erik for a long time.

_**Authors Note: I have updated and changed this chapter a little as I was horrified at the state of my writing. So even though you might be on a further chapter I would love it if you could take the time and share with me your views on this updated chapter. xox**_


	2. Brief Encounters

**_Disclaimer: I do not own x-men _**

The next ten years of my life went by in a blink of an eye. I had now developed into a young determined woman who's on a mission to recapture my life with Erik and find the man who tormented my dreams. Three years ago I managed to escape from Schmitt's wicked clutches and reveal my eyes to the true wonders of the world. I found refuge with a CIA official. He was a middle aged plump man who found me wandering the streets at night in nothing but a ripped black dress, he took me back to his facility and has been caring for me ever since. He knew nothing of my mutation as I created a fist full of lies explaining why my skin was the way it was, luckily for me he decided to believe the lies.

During my time at the CIA facility I was introduced to another mutant called Hank. His mutation was that he was blessed with an incredible brain and hand large feet enabling him to hang upside down. Hank was as curious with my mutation as I was with his and he managed to create a serum that normalized my appearance for the course of eight wonderful hours, as long as I didn't use my fire mutation.

So, on my 21st Birthday I walked through the streets of Paris wearing a stylish blue, cupped sleave dress, hidden by the grey coat that enveloped my body till knee length. I made my way to a grand bank in the center of Paris where I was told I could gather information on Schmitt's whereabouts.

I pushed open the glass door to the bank and ventured my way deeper in search for my destination. I soon came across the lobby and took of my grey coat resting it on a blue velvet chair. Rolling my shoulders I walked past the information desk to the room that I was in search for.

It didn't take me long to find the location and twist the golden door handle to unveil my awaiting information. As I opened the door a tall slender man stepped out, bumping his shoulder into mine before hurrying his way back out the building. I followed him with my gaze and shrugged before entering the room and clicking the door shut with a soft click. I gracefully made my way over to the banker who stared at me wide eyed.

"Excuse me but what are you doing here? This s a private bank." He said in French revealing a scared look as I walked towards him. I ignored his pleading looks and made my way around his desk and grabbed his wrists tightly with my pale hands.

"Where is Schmitt?" I asked calmly. "Klaus Schmitt where is he?"

"Argentine! Shaw is in Argentina!" He yelled before I could inflict a burning sensation on his wrists. I pulled back and stared deep into his brown eyes. I was tempted to take a peek at his past memories but before I could, his secretary entered the room.

"Your client is here." She told him making me spin around.

"Nice doing biussness with you." I said to the banker and pushed past the secretary to make plans for my trip overseas.

* * *

I walked over the green Argentinian hills, letting the warm sun soak my skin. My cream colored dress brushed softly against my pale bare legs as I made it closer to the pub. My fingers played with the necklace that hung around my neck, a silver pendant shaped as a heart grazed the surface of my fingertips.

I soon found myself standing infornt of the wooden pub door. My hand dropped from my necklace and hesitated at the door handle before my fingers wrapped around the handle and twisted it open. I stepped into the pub taking in the cool air that refreshed my lungs. My eyes swept around the room and found a bar man along two costumers sitting at a table. The two customers both wiggled their eyebrows at me.

"Hello would you like us to buy you a drink?" The larger one out of the two asked.

"No." I said firmly and turned to the bar man. I sat on a stool and the server came up leaning against the table smiling. "One apple juice please." Both men behind me laughed and I slowly sipped at my drink. As the time went by I took advantage of my telepathic mutation and plunged inside their minds.

Their thoughts were dirty and sicking which only made skin crawl and my nails dig into the side of the table. I wanted it to stop, but when I tried to get out; it was if I was stuck. So I took advantage and looked further into their pasts. One was a tailor and the other a pig farmer. They both had spoiled rich lives. Everything seemed pretty normal until I found one certain memory in the tailors mind.

He was younger and was measuring a small girl with a fragile looking frame. The girl had red hair, pale skin with red markings and red eyes and nails. The girl who I transformed into every night was standing right infornt of me; expect she was 17 years old version of myself. I quickly pulled out of his head and dived through my own memories

Tears streamed down my face as the image of my 17 year old self was tied up to a chair. My hair was cut short just skimming my shoulders. I was wearing a black lace dress and the tailor, the pig farmer and Schmitt were standing right infornt of me. It was like I was drugged. The memory was all blurry through drugged eyes. The three were all speaking German and I could only make out a couple of words, then Schmitt came towards me and grabbed me by the chin and looked me over my body.

"Beautiful isn't she?" Schmitt said in German. My head rolled to the side looking at the men.

"Yes she is. What would you give her to us for?" Asked the tailor.

"Give?" Schmitt asked. "No she is not for sale. She knows things yet she won't speak." My head rolled to the side and I smiled wickedly.

"Erik." I breathed. "Erik Lensherr will come for me."

"Erik is far away silly girl." Schmitt replied.

"No. He will find me and you. And when he does he will kill you." The pig farmer came up and slapped me on the face and everything went blank.

When my eyes fluttered open in the next memory I was still wearing the black dress and I was lying down on a hard bed. Realization told me that this was the memory where I had been drugged and raped, all thanks to Shaw. I slowly got up from the bed and make my way to the door shakily. My hand wanted to grasp but the handle but before it could the door slammed open revealing the Pig Farmer

This time I didn't hesitate. I placed both hands on the cool frame of the door and kicked with both feet into the man's private parts and then head-butted him. He went down flat and I ran through the building with only the thought of escape.

Two guards came at me. I ducked and grabbed both of their heads , slamming them together making them fall down. I went through the rest of the guards easily without having to use my mutant powers until I came face to face with the Tailor. He held a gun and it pointed straight at me. Then from behind the pig farmer came behind me and pulled me up by my hair and I released a gut wrenching scream which only made them laugh.

"Erik is not coming for you." He spat and tossed me to the ground, kicking me in the chest forcing a mouth full of blood to splutter out. I scrambled to my feet and the gun that the tailor was holding was pressed against my chest. My breathing increased as his the incessant pounding of my heart.

"No one is coming." The tailor said with a playful smile across his lips.

"No?" I asked crocking my head to side. "But I am here." I pushed on the ground with my feet and did a backflip; in the process I grabbed the gun out of his hands with my two feet and then pulled my legs into my chest. While in the air I grabbed the gun in my hand and went back to a straight position.

"Good evening my friends."

"Good evening."

The new voice broke me away from the memory state and I came back to reality. A handsome man sat on one stool away from me. He was wearing creamy brown pants and a white top making him look devilish handsome.

"Hot no." He asked in Spanish. I blushed and nodded.

"Yes." I replied. He smiled at me and waved his hand over to the bar man.

"One beer please." He asked and settled in his seat. I returned to my apple juice and looked around the room for any signs of Schmitt. And there it was. A picture of the three of them. Schmitt in the middle with the two men in the bar on his sides. I took in a deep breath and spun around on my seat so I faced the two gentlemen. They both smiled at me and I returned it.

"So how about that drink?" The tailor asked. I laughed and crossed one leg over the other.

"I don't take drinks from strangers. Who knows it could be drugged." I raised an eyebrow at them and they looked at me with a slight bit of fear in their eyes.

"It's a bar I don't think so." He was speaking German now. "What do you think, should we take her?" The Tailor asked the pig farmer.

"She looks like fun." My eyes hardened and I spun back around in my chair and looked up at the photo.

"I speak German." I replied and sipped at my apple juice and enveloped myself into the silence.

"German bear." The man next to me said as he received his drink.

"Of course." The bar man replied as the man next to me took a sip. I looked up and watched as he took his first gulp. For some reason he was irresistible. His voice, his hair and the smile that he gave me. My personal dream lover.

"Yes." Said one of the men behind us. "It's bitburger, you like it." I turned around and sneered at them as they laughed.

"You shouldn't be so mean." I said in German. My grip on my glass tightened.

"The best." My eyes widened and I looked at the man who was sitting next to me. He spoke German and he turned around holding his drink and smiled at the two men.

"What brings you to Argentina?" He asked.

"Oh." The big farmer sighed. "The climate, I'm a pig farmer." He then laughed and the tailor smiled.

"Tailor, ever since I was boy." Replied the tailor who was smoking a cigarette. "My father made the finest suits in Dusseldorf."

"My parents were from Dusseldorf." The man exclaimed next to me. He got up and took a seat at their table.

"Ah." I could tell the men were worried and a smile crept on my face.

"Yeah!" The man replied happily.

"What was their name?" Asked the tailor.

"They didn't have a name." I paused and straightened my back. "It was taken away from them. By pig farmers and tailors." He said as he clinked glasses with them. They drank slowly and then I heard them all put their glasses down. I turned around and saw the handsome man turn his arm around to reveal numbers printed into his skin. Then sudden realization came into my head and I dived into the man's head for his identity. Erik.

"Where are Shaw and Zoe Nimitiz?" My eyes widened and I turned around fully and stood up.

"Zoe?" The tailor asked and laughed. "Ah we dealt with her a long time ago." He laughed. "She was fun." I was about to use my fire when suddenly the pig farmer pulled out a knife to plunge into Erik's forearm. I let out a scream but Erik was fast and grabbed it straight out of his hand and pressed the pig farmers arm down flat on the table.

"Blood and honour." Erik read of the knife. He sounded viscious and scary. His hair fell in his eyes and he looked almost beastly. "Which one would you like to shed first?" He asked.

"We were under orders. It wasn't our choice to rape her." Sad the pig farmer.

"Blood then." Erik said and plunged the knife deep into the pig farmers arm. He let out a scream and I could not help but smile. I hadn't seen Erik for about 10 years and now he was killing for me. I remembered the words I said. Erik will come for me. He will kill you. And he was. He truly did love me. Or at least cared for me. But before I could say anything the tailor stood up and grabbed me, holding a silver knife to my neck.

Erik's silver eyes looked at me with concern and with a swift motion moved his gaze to the barman who had a gun and pointed it straight at him. I felt tears streaming down my face.

"No!" I screamed. The bar man took a look at me and returned to Erik.

"Freeze asshole!" He shouted. Erik though looked unamused. He fixed his gaze on the gun and slowly moved it and the barman's arm, pointing straight towards me and the tailor. I took a deep breath and kicked the tailor in his private parts before running to stand behind Erik with my back pressed up against the wall. Erik, then with his power shot the gun and the tailor fell dead on the floor. He then with a quick moment pulled the knife out of the pig farmers arm ,controlling it with his magnetic power and made it fly into the barman's chest before pulling it back and sticking it into the farmers hand who screamed again. Erik then grabbed this bear and finished it off.

"Who…" Whimpered the pig farmer. "What are you?" He asked in utter fear.

"Lets just say I am frankensitines monster." Erik said in English, standing up and walking towards the picture on the wall. "And I am looking for my creator." And with that ,the gun flew to his hand and he pulled the trigger killing the pig farmer dead. I screamed again and fell to my knees against the wall and pressed them up to my chest.

Whatever Erik had been through must have been horrible and I am too scared to look into his head to find out what. I have had horrible past being raped, drugged and experiment on. It made me scared but for Erik it made him stronger. I didn't have to look into his mind to already see that he had strong anger in him. Great pain and anger. I felt for him. I also felt stupid sitting on the floor curled up crying after my lover had just killed two well three men who had hurt me.

I heard and then felt two hands on both of my shoulders. I looked up and quickly whipped away my tears. Erik then stood up and stuck out his hand for me to take. I did and stood up without taking my eyes off his. My hand wanted to stay in his but he quickly removed his from mine.

"You should go home.." He said and then left.

"Erik! I said after the door had closed and I sunk back on my knees and cried.


	3. New Introductions

_**Disclaimer: I do not own x-men, my imagination just feeds of it. **_

It was around a week later when my uncle had called for me. Since I had met Erik again I could not get him out of my mind. It was if his brief touch on my shoulders left a forever mark on my skin. I needed to be close to him, to know he was alright. For the past week I had been searching for him all over Argentina. It was if I had given up on my search for Shaw and replaced it with the search for Erik.

Anyways a week had past and there's been no sign of Erik. When my Uncle called for me I was a relieved when he told me that he had a hit on Shaw. It was the perfect distraction to stop my obsessive thoughts of Erik. I met my Uncle in America and it was around 7 at night. I only had around an hour or two left before I would transfer back into my real form.

I was wearing a simple black dress along with black tights, leather jacket and boots. It made me look dangerous and I loved the feeling that it gave me. I felt as though I could face the world. But then again, actions speak louder then words.

As I approached the boat I practically ran towards my uncle who picked me up and whirled me around. He kissed my hair and put me down and gave me a once over. I could not help but smile at his concerned face. He was dressed in a siut and was wearing his black rimmed glasses.

"You look ready for action." He said proudly. "You'll never guess what I have found."

"What?" I asked happily. I loved my uncle. He had become like a second father. Off course he wasn't actually my uncle but he had found me and from then on I just called him my uncle. His thoughts showed so much love for me and I decided it was the least I could do for him.

"Mutants!" He exclaimed and my smiled turned upside down. I looked down at my boots and then back to him.

"Oh." I said. "How, how many?" I asked.

"Two. A telepath and a shift shaper." I smiled and walked past him onto the ship. I wanted to see for myself on how powerful they really were. My uncle did not know of my powers but it was getting to a point where he needed to know ,and if that meant a mind battle with a telepath then I was up for it.

When I was on the boat, fellow crew members greeted me with smiles. My uncle hastily followed me up top. I knew where they were. I could feel them.

"So" I asked him. "How dangerous are these mutants?" I asked.

"Dangerous. No they wouldn't hurt us." He said. I stopped and spun around on my heels.

"If they hurt you in any way I will be the first one to know." He laughed but my face stayed serious. "So let's go meet them." I hoped up the stairs and when I came face to face with the mutants I could not help but smile. I put up my block so the telepath whose name I discovered quickly was Charles and the girl was Raven would not be able to get anything from me.

"Ah I would like you to meet my niece Zoe." I smiled and stuck out my hand. Charles took it and he almost looked breathless. I laughed and took his instead of waiting for him to make a move.

"Not used to meeting other people whose thoughts you can't read?" I asked.

"Yes, well that is amazing how are you doing it." Charles asked still holding onto my hand.

"Lets just say wer both have our tricks." I said a little cheekily. "We both have secrets .I will stay out for you head and I will make sure you stay out of mine." This time he laughed.

"I don't think I have a choice do I?" He asked.

"No you don't." I said smiling and turned my attention to Raven.

"I'm Zoe, no need to ask what your name is." I know I sounded rude and regretted it a little after it came out. What can I say, I'm not used to other mutants. There was Erik, Hank and my best friend Anastasia. I had first met Anastasia after my Uncle granted my dream and allowed me to go to a Theatre school. She has wide brown eyes and straight thick cream hair. She has a skinny hour-glass figure with a waist to die for. Her power, at first I thought it was her ability to be insanely flexible. But after numerous amounts of sleepovers I found out that her mutation is addiction. I don't really know what to call it, but anytime she wants she can make a person fall in love with her. It sounds cruel and at first I grew nervous that she would do it to me. But after a while I got used to it. So overall I only knew three mutants besides Shaw. But it took me a while to get to know them. With a past like mine it always takes me a while to get comfortable with new people. I guess that being tortured, raped and experimented on does that to you.

"Well shall we get onto the task that we are all here for." I asked looking around all of them and then stopped at my Uncle who looked shocked. I sighed and made my way towards him and placed both hands on his shoulders. "Yes Uncle I am a mutant. And remember what I said about if anyone hurts you?" He nodded. "Good because I will be the first to know and deal with them." I then pulled myself in for a tight hug. "I love you okay." He nodded and I turned towards the two of them. "Right let's get moving."

I sat up top on the metal railings and looked out in the night sky. Any minute now I would change back into my real form. I had to get cover before they discovered what my true power was. Hank always said 'The least they know the more you have the advantage.' I shut my eyes and listened to the sound of the waves. The wind picked up and took control of my strands of hair rapping them around my neck. I kept my eyes shut and My fingers gripped the edge of the metal bars. I sighed in and out and opened my eyes so I was looking down at the sea. I hated the ocean. Water and fire never mixed. I was about to leap of the metal bars when I heard footsteps behind me. I didn't have to turn around to see who it was behind me.

"Charles." I said smiling and turned my head around to see him approaching me. He placed his hands on the metal railings and looked out. "I hate the water." I said after a few minutes of silence. "I feel as if when I am in it I have no control of over my own body." I didn't know why I said but I did. "I can't swim; I guess that is part of my reason."

"You seem sad." Charles said now leaning against the rails and looked in my eyes. I nodded and straightened out my black dress.

"I guess you don't need to be a telepath to finger out that." I said shrugging.

"No. Do you want to tell me why?" He asked. I sighed and jumped of the rails and skimmed my fingers over the cool metal.

"When I was little I was experimented on, tortured, and rapped all because of Shaw." I looked to see Charles eyes widen in shock. "I guess that finding Shaw would mean the world to me, but I am afraid of what I might do." He started at me for a few seconds as if he was trying to reach inside my mind. I sighed. "I'm not one for killing but it seems like the right thing to do."

"Zoe killing is not the answer to peace." Charles said and took my hand to squeeze it.

"No, but it might bri…" I was interrupted by the ships loud horns and the lights coming on.

"This is the US coast guard do not attempt to move your vessels." Said a male voice on the overcome.

"Come on." I said and ran to the front of the boat with Charles right behind me. My Uncle and a FBI agent who I believed is called Moira stood next to us on either side. I looked out to the ocean and saw three speed boats heading towards Shaw's boat. The wind blew rapidly threw my hair as both Charles and I attempted to reach inside the minds of the people on the boat.

I then let out a scream as I felt someone else in my head. I went to the ground and my Uncles arms wrapped around me helping me stand up.

"I've lost Shaw." Charles said still trying to get into his mind. He glanced down at me with concern. I felt weak and I knew why. I wasn't a strong telepath and for someone to break the bond would hurt me physically and mentally. "I've lost Shaw." Charles repeated looking back up with the lights flickering behind us. "Someone is blocking me. I am sorry this has never happened to me before." Charles said in panic. "I think there is someone like Zoe and I on that ship." I was feeling weak and vulnerable especially now since Charles could read my thoughts. He turned to me and looked at me with widened eyes. "I can read your thoughts." I nodded and straighten up but not pulling away from my Uncle.

"She broke the telepathic block." I said. "To do that takes strength and also causes me pain." I said. "There is absolutely someone like us out there."

"Someone like you?" Asked Moira.

"Sorry a telepath." I said politely to Moira.

"I can actually feel her inside my mind." Charles said and then turned towards my Uncle. "I am sorry but I don't think Zoe or I will be any help tonight. " I was about to say something else when I saw a flash of red coming from above. I slowly managed to sneak out as the others talked about the situation. I headed up top to the boat. I looked around and stayed silent while the lights flashed. My breath quickened and I felt the wind pick up.

"Hello little girl." I turned around in a rush to face whatever was here to hurt me. There in front of me stood a tall well-built man. He had red skin with black hair and a slight beard. He also had two scars on the sides of his face and a red tail. He smirked at me and slowly drew two long daggers from his belt. The blade made a hissing whisper as it was removed from the sheathe. I held his gaze firmly and stuck out my palms. Little but deadly balls of fire appeared in both palms and I let out a hiss. I bent down just a little and placed my back foot back to get good balance. I then felt my form change and therefore my power grow. My hair turned into a dark red and my eyes turned into small rubies. My nails took a round shape and when I looked down it looked like perfectly placed red nail polish. The last part was my skin. I felt the patterns appear on my skin and I crocked my neck getting comfortable with their presence.

"Don't hold back." I hissed. The creature infornt of me smiled and slowly brought one foot behind his back. I then started the fight releasing one of my fire balls which the creature dodged. He rushed towards me, dipped and weaved left t as he was around to reach me and slash downwards with one of his daggers. I quickly held out my hand and set fire to his left hand making him release one of his daggers. I quickly did a forward roll and grabbed hold of it quick enough to clash my dagger with his. I found my strength and pushed against his dagger. Once I was on my feet I withdrew and did a backwards flip to gain some distance.

The creature was very fast and also to my surprise a teleporter. I saw him disappear but with my own telepathic skills I was able to tell that he was going behind me. I spun around, sidestepped to the right just enough that his blade passed a fairy's breath from my face. Quickly before he could responded with a follow up I set my hand on fire and punched the creature hard in the face. He went back a couple of steps patting the flames down.

Unfortunately he was very quick and strong. He jumped up into the air and teleported behind me and then suddenly back infornt of me and side kicked me in the stomach doubling me over. He then slashed a thin line across my stomach drawing blood. I clutched my stomach and growled standing up once more and let out a scream as fire went right up my arms. I then smiled and in bursts, threw fire balls at him. He jumped up and teleported right beside me. He was about to hit me in the head but I was faster and grabbed his outstretched arm and nocking the dagger out of his hand onto the floor.

Stupidly I still hand my hand on his wrist and before I could let go the creature teleported me up into the sky right above the ocean. He now had his hand on my throat and I screamed with everything I could.

"Bye." He said and let go of me disappearing. I screamed as I went plunging to the ocean. It happened so fast, one minute I was in the air the next I found myself underwater and swimming for the surface, my lungs bursting. I felt weak now. The cold embrace of the sea is clawing at me and my mind turns to my loved ones. Erik.

The thought of him made me push up once more. My head bobbed up and down dipping into the cold water. My leather jacket and boots are heavy weights dragging me down to the endless sea of black below me. I thrashed my arms in the water trying to keep myself above the water. Freezing liquid enters my body. I outstretched my hand as I sunk lower into the water. My eyes only half opened in a begging way for someone to help me.

Then as if it was a sign from god a strong hand clasped onto mine and pulled me up and out of the water. Once I got the feeling of air back in my lungs I looked up into my saviour's eyes. Silver eyes. I felt a hand carees my cheek and I sent a little burst of heat into his shivering body just before I passed out.

_**Authors Note: Thank you to Lorna Roxen, Yolo4evaIhavenom, Bookwuurm, Kittycat57963 and TheLittleIzaya for your enthusiastic reviews! Keep it coming and tell me what you think of Zoe's character, what might happen between Erik and Zoe and what you would find interesting! so here is the next chapter! Hope I didn't disappoint! Peace Out. **_


	4. Chapter Four

_**Disclaimer: I do not own x-men my imagination simply feeds of it.**_

When I became conscious I didn't open my eyes. I stayed very still and checked my surroundings by touch, smell and telepathic use. I quickly became aware of someone's hand on mine. The person drew circles on my mutated skin, making my breathing clam down. The fingers were soft against mine. I took pleasure in it before reaching inside this persons mind.

_After all these years of searching and I finally found her. She looks so calm and beautiful. I wish that I could have been there for her. To prevent all her near death experiences like her drowning just now. Or that wicked red line on her stomach._

My eyes burst open and my lips parted slightly. I turned my head to gaze at Erik. His grey eyes were fixed on my hand that he so lightly caressed, his brown hair hanging down in his eyes, shadowing his masculine features. He was dressed in a black turtle neck and a stylish brown leather jacket that slightly pulled where his shoulders were. I couldn't help but smile. I wanted to reach forward and brush his silk like hair out of his eyes, but a metal band on my wrist restrained me. Panic kicked in and my breathing increased. My eyes darted up and clasped upon the bold white ceiling.

"Where am I?" I asked softly and attempted to tug my wrists free. The cool metal against my skin was strong and kept me contained. Before I could try and sit up a new yet familiar face appeared over mine. Hank. He smiled down at me with slight concern on his face. With his middle finger he pressed his black glasses higher on his nose and peered down at me.

"The facility in the CIA where you have been living for the past three years." He said slowly. "Your home." Where ever I was in the facility I had not been in this part, hence my tenseness at the unfamiliar surroundings. Besides the fact that my wrists had metal bands on them. Hank then pressed his hand lightly on my chest and I hissed in pain. "Sorry." He apologized "It should be fine in a few days. You're incredibly lucky it wasn't worse." I laughed and rolled my shoulders back in an attempted to get comfortable.

"Worse?" I asked. "I've been through much worse." Hank sighed at my response and I averted my gaze from his to look at Erik, who sat on the white stool next to my hospital bed. He straightened up a little and clicked open the metal bands. I raised my hands up and held onto my right wrist with my left hand. "Thank you." I said politely and sat up, hissing as I came into position. I gripped my stomach and tried to control my heavy breathing. Erik though was fast at my side and placed a hand on the small of my back.

"You should rest." He said in a way that made my heart melt. I couldn't help but smile, and without realizing what I was doing, my hand moved to rest on the side of his face.

"Erik." I said and smiled, letting tears of joy spill from my eyes. Then without another thought my arms wrapped themselves around his neck and pulled him in close. Erik shifted his body weight and sat down close to me, tightening his grip around my waist and moving a hand to stroke my bed hair.

"Erik." I said again and breathed slowly in and out. "Erik." I repeated. He let me go and took my face in his hands.

"When I saw you in the water, " He said softly, playing with tangled stands of red hair, "I thought I lost you." I pulled back and placed both hands on the side of his clean shaven face. My thumbs moved up and down in a stroking motion.

"Erik. You will never loose me." I whispered dropping my hands to my necklace. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you to." He replied "When I heard that you were…" I quickly put a finger to his lips and hushed him.

"I know what you did for me Erik." I said slowly, keeping eye contact. "How can I ever repay you?" I asked.

"You don't" He replied. I hissed again, becoming aware of the growing pain in my stomach. Why did I have to ruin the moment? I asked myself as Erik fussed over me.

"You should leave." Hank then said, coming to my other side. "She's weak and needs to rest." Erik nodded and I scowled at Hank. Erik stood up, placing a kiss on my forehead.

"I'm going after Shaw." Erik said and I had to blink several times to gather what he had just said. He must have thought that my reaction was amusing because a smile played over his lips. "I want you to stay here. Once I am finished I will come back for you."

"Erik no, I want to come…" I said and started getting of the bed but he came towards me and took my wrists. His hands where gentle on my skin and he moved his thumbs up and down making my breathing calm once more. I really had to ask him how he did that. Going back to the matter at hand, I bit my lip in frustration. "Erik don't leave. There is an organization here that can help you." I furthered but Erik simply shook his head.

"No Zoe." His voice turning slightly harsh. "I have been on my own for so long. I don't need help and you need to rest."

"Erik." I said sternly, "Don't forget that I have been on my own to and I know how to handle myself." I spat. "I'm not a little girl anymore Erik." I continued and softened my voice.

"I know, I know." He replied, running his fingers through his hair. "I just don't want you risking your life again."

"But…"

"And you're in no condition to fight." I sighed heavily. "I have to go. But I will make sure that I bring his head back." He kissed my forehead for a long sweet moment before turning and leaving through the doors and locking the metal bolt.

"I have to go after him." I said jumping off the bed and then suddenly going down on my knees and clutching my aching chest. Hank came to my side quickly, taking my hand and placing the other on my back. I looked up into his eyes and gave him a weak smile. "I'm alright."

"No you're not." Hank said. "You need to rest, and by rest I mean sleep." I rolled my eyes at him and with his support I managed to get to my feet.

"Hank, I have been searching for Erik for 10 years and for him to take Shaw down on his own once he promised we'd do it together is just no fair." I protested. "I can't just…"

"He said he will be back." Hank protested. "And he was right about you not being in a good condition to fight."

"Yes, but what if he gets hurt what if…" Hank rolled his eyes and went over to grab an injection.

"Zoe, he has been out of your life for 10 years." He said approaching me. "Just because he comes back I don't want you to become totally reliant on him." I laughed. "Or turn into a lovesick girl."

"I'm not a love sick girl!" I said and placed both hands on my hips. Though after saying it I realized I actually just might be. I was when I was 11 and 10 years later I still am. Guess some things never change. I shrugged and sat down on the bed. "You don't like him do you." I said simply.

"No, but that's not the point. You need to rest." Hank said and grabbed hold of my arm, facing it palm side up.

"Why not?" I asked. "Is it some male pride thing, because Erik would win." Hank did not answer, and his face remained blank as he and slid the needle into my skin. I pulled back slightly and scrunched up my face.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yea, I just hate needles." My voice was already drawling and Hank helped me lie down on the white bed. Within the next second my eyes closed and I fell into a deep sleep

* * *

When my eyes flickered open sunlight was streaming into the room. I sat up, pleased to find that the metal bands were not around my wrists but on the floor broken. I dangled my feet over the bed, moving my toes around. There was no one else in the room which was a surprise, since when I got sick or hurt from training Hank would basically be in here 24/7.

"Must be something pretty important going on." I said to myself. Since there was no sign of anyone coming in to visit me, I slowly placed my feet on the cool, tiled floor and winced at the pain in my stomach. Luckily it didn't hurt as much as it did yesterday so I decided to get up and investigate these two new mutants.

I slowly headed out of the white room and waddled around in my white hospital gown, bare footed and still in my mutated form, clutching onto my stomach. I probably looked like some pregnant, brain damaged freak that got lost in a make-up and hair store.

I soon managed to pick up the pace of my waddle and found my way to my old room, avoiding the CIA agents that worked here. My room was quiet large. It had a queen size, white, four poster bed that sat in the middle of the room. The walls were painted light lavender by Anastasia and me. The carpet was a creamy but appeared white when the sun hit it. There were also several windows and a connecting bathroom which held all of my injections and toiletries.

I headed over to my wardrobe and pulled out a blue summer dress that reached just down to my knees. I then selected my signature black combat boots. After lacing them up I headed to the bathroom and shuffled around in my black toilet bag. I pulled out a fresh injection and squirted it before inserting the fine silver needle into my mutated skin. It took around a minute to take effect. A very uncomfortable one minute. My hair felt as if it was being pulled back, my eyes went blurry and my skin felt scratching.

After the one minute everything went back to as it was. I had black hair, wide brown eyes and pale skin that looked as if it had never seen the sun. I brushed my hair and tied it back into a high pony tail and fixed my fringe.

"Guess this is as good as it is gonna get." I said and straightened out my dress whilst turning away from the mirror to find out what was going on.

I wandered around the facility for what seemed like ages. I kicked at the grass and stones that appeared at my feet. I checked every room and made casual conversation with the agents. Just as I was about to give up I walked straight into my Uncle.

"Zoe!' He exclaimed and looked almost surprised. "Aren't you supposed to be resting?" He asked.

"Yea, but that would be no fun." I said and nodded my head in the direction of the kitchen. "So where are the mutants?" I asked him as we walked.

"They are at Cerebo. Charles is using it to find other mutants." I nodded. Cerebo is a machine that Hank built that can enhance telepathic powers to find other mutants. I tried it once but unfortunately it nearly killed me. The pain was excruciating and I felt as if my mind was going to blow up. But then again I was a very weak telepath.

Once we arrived to the empty kitchen I made a bee line for the fridge. I opened it and feasted my eyes on the food that lay right before me.

"Fancy some lasagne?" I asked, looking back over my shoulder. My Uncle smiled in response.

"Thought you'd never ask" He said joyfully and rubbed his hands together. I turned back to the fridge and fetched the necessary ingredients. Once I had all of them laid out before me I started on the mince. During the stirring process I made small talk with my Uncle about various topics that came up. The most common one was his discovery of me being a mutant. Thankfully he was getting used to the idea and didn't ask many questions.

"Zoe?" My uncle said, his tone making me turn around, splattering red sauce on the floor.

"Woops." I placed the spoon down and quickly ran to the sink getting a sponge. "Yep."

"For lunch could you also set the table for the other mutants and Moira?" I looked up from my cleaning and whipped my clean hands on my dress.

"So how many places?" I asked and watching my Uncle count silently in his head.

"Seven." I nodded and tried to figure out who the seven might be. There was My Uncle and I, Hank, Charles, Raven and Moira. That left space for one more. Probably another CIA agent.

"Yes sir." I saluted him and placed the sponge back in the sink before grabbed the bag of cheese. I dipped my hand in and took some for myself before handing it over to my Uncle.

"Great." He placed the bag on the counter. "I best be going. I'll see you at lunch." He walked over and placed a kiss on my forehead and walked out using a jolly looking walk.

Whilst the lasagne was in the oven I put on some music and sat down at the kitchen table and formed a small flame in my hand while looking at my chemistry book. I always had a talent for science. I was doing a chemistry degree and my final was coming up in a few weeks. Though now when I looked down at the book all I saw was a bunch of letters and numbers. Whose stupid idea was it for me to do this degree? I asked myself. Oh yes, me. I read over my notes for 20 minutes, waiting impatiently for the buzzer to ring. But surprisingly my distraction came sooner then I imagined.

"Smells delicious." I lifted my head and my eyes bulged before a smile lit up on my face.

"Erik." I said and made the flame disappear from my hand and quickly ran towards him flinging my arms around his neck. He stepped back a little at my force before wrapping his arms around me. "You stayed." I said, almost a little out of breath. I felt so happy that I thought I was about to burst.

"Yes well it took a little convincing from Charles." He said, still holding me. "But the thought of leaving you and taking down Shaw without you was my true reason." I smiled and pulled back a little.

"You have no idea how amazing it is to see you again." I said still not quite composed. He grinned down at me, taking in my appearance.

"I was the girl in Argentina." I said meeting his eyes. "I saw everything you did for me and it means so much to me to see that."

"It's strange seeing you in his form." He said. I shrugged my right shoulder.

"It's easier to live in then being cast aside as a freak." I replied.

"No, you're not a freak. You shouldn't be ashamed of what you are." I stayed silent taking in his honest words. "So how are you feeling?" He asked.

"Better." I replied, though the pain in my stomach was still clearly there. "Yea, I'm good." Then the oven beeped and I quickly went over and opened in taking out the lasagne without any gloves on my hand. Once I put it down I removed my hand to reveal the angry red burns on it. Erik looked alarmed and quickly came towards me, taking my hand. "Don't worry." I said, squeezing my hand together and then opening it again to show there wasn't a burn on it.

"Exceptional."

* * *

Later on we all sat down on the table outside eating our lasagne while talking about the morning events. The other mutants informed my Uncle, Moira and I about Cerebo and how excited Charles was about going off to find them. I couldn't help but feel left out and almost a little angry that Hank hadn't gotten me up to see Charles work the machine.

"So, " Raven began from across me. "What can you do?" She asked while putting a piece of my lasagne in her mouth. I sighed and placed my fork down.

"Well I'm a telepath." I said shrugging. I could feel Erik's heavy gaze on me. Because it was our powers that made us special, they were our closest guarded secret. I knew I should trust these people, but my experiences so far and Hank have taught me to be cautious for now. So I looked Erik in the eye, staying silent and daring him to call me out on my lie.

"That's not all she can do." Hank pipped in. I knew he wasn't referring to my fire power but something else that I kept a close secret on. I took a deep breath and slowly revealed what it was since it was not a mutation.

"It's not a mutation." I began, keeping my steady gaze on Erik. "When I moved camp bases I decided to teach myself how to fight. Then after I escaped I went to a school and then when I came here." I nodded towards Hank. "Hank set up a program where I could learn how to fight."

"She's basically a black belt." My Uncle said proudly.

"So…" I began trying to change the conversation, "when are you going after the mutants?" I asked Charles.

"Erik and I will be heading of first thing tomorrow." I nodded and felt a feeling of envy rush through me.

"Can I come?" I asked bring silence to the table. "I mean just because I am the youngest doesn't mean that I have less rights to go out and discover new mutants." I turned my gaze to Erik and held it out, waiting for an answer.

"She has a point Charles." Erik said brining a smile to my face.

"Yes, I suppose it will be alright." Charles said and made my grin wider. "But, you must stick with Erik and I at all times, clear?" I nodded.

"Crystal."

Once everyone had finished, my Uncle was quick to get up and rub his belly, full from the two servings he had. "Right, shall we have dessert?" he asked. I laughed and wondered how much stomach room he had left after all he had just eaten.

"Yes why not." I said in a light tone. "Your favourite part of the meal."

"You bet cha." He replied and went to the kitchen to fetch whatever he had in store. I smiled and turned my head to Erik who sat next to me. He smiled and nodded at his empty plate.

"It was delicious." I smiled and blushed slightly.

"Thanks" was all I could say before I was interrupted by Ravens thoughts. I knew she wasn't doing it on purpose and that was part of the curse of being a telepath but I could read people's thoughts whether it was the things i liked or the things I did not like. Things that I either wanted to know or didn't want to know.

_Erik is so handsome; I wish he would notice me more._

I wanted to scowl but before I could my Uncle returned with a bar of chocolate and put it in front of the table. But it wasn't just any chocolate. If my memory was correct it was the chocolate that Shaw had offered Erik and I when Shaw killed Erik's mother. I turned to Erik and felt that he was reliving the memory too.

"Chocolate, Zoe?" I took a piece and nibbled on it. "Erik?" He shook his head and my Uncle offered it to the others. I gulped it down and took Erik's hand from under the table and squeezed it. I may be 6-7 years younger than him but I didn't care about the age gap. I loved him. He squeezed back and met my gaze with his silver eyes sharing an understanding about our past.

After lunch Charles and Raven were chosen to do clean up duty so I took that as an opportunity to spend some time with Erik. After I helped put the plates in the kitchen I met him in the hallway. He stuck his hands in his pockets and I weaved my right one through his arm. He smiled and kissed my forehead.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" I asked.

"Why not." He replied. I grinned and lead him outside to the gardens. "So tell me about your life." Erik started. "What happened after you left?"

"Well." I said and walked over to a wooden bench and sat down while Erik sat next to me. "Once I left I was taken to another camp where Shaw experimented on me to see if he could transfer my powers to humans." Erik nodded slowly and I could tell from his mind that it was hard for him to hear this. "He treated me like a lab rat in private but he pretended that I was his daughter in public events. I had to follow him around and go to all these events. Then when I was 17 years old he took me to a dress fitting. I didn't cooperate. I tried to escape but he drugged me. I'm not sure what happened after that but what I do know for sure is that I was raped by the tailor and his friend." Erik took my hand and squeezed it tightly. His facial expression showing extreme anger. I could feel his murderous thoughts in my own. "Then when I woke up and the drugs wore off I beat the living shits out of them and told them that Erik will find them and kill them." Erik laughed ,bringing a slight smile to my face. "Which you did. Then I was found by my Uncle. Well he isn't really but I just call him that. Anyways he took me in and I was introduced to Hank. He made me an injection to normalize my form and I learnt how to fight, to use my powers effectively. I also joined a dance and theatre academy and I am going to do a degree in chemistry. Other than that I have been searching for you and for Shaw."

"You sound like you're extremely smart and um…" I he laughed, trailing off a bit embarrassed.

"Not what you expected?" I asked. He nodded. "Yea I guess I turned into a geek." He laughed and then sighed.

"No. Geeks aren't as beautiful as you are." I blushed.

"Really?" I asked.

"Really." I looked down and played with my dress. "But I don't understand why you are normalizing your features." Erik said placing a finger on my chin and lifted in up. "Your mutation is beautiful. One that you shouldn't be afraid to expose."

"I guess I forgot how kind you can be. Your so..." I took a deep breath in. I wanted to say irresistible but I couldn't find the strength to say it. Instead I came up with something else. "Do you want me to prevent Charles from coming into your mind?" I asked. His eyes widened.

"You can do that?" He asked. I nodded.

"I can prevent him from looking at your memories and thoughts. But I can't prevent him from communicating."

"You truly are exceptional."

"Not really." I said and shifted my position so I was facing him. "Now don't worry, this won't hurt a bit." I placed both of my hands on either side of his face, not touching his skin. "Close your eyes" I said softly and he did as instructed. I dived into his mind and set to work. It only took about a minute or two before I removed my hands. Erik's eyes were still closed and I tried to get into his mind but I couldn't. "All done." I said and he opened his eyes looking me directly in the eyes. I wanted to kiss him but somehow managed to restrain myself. Instead he stood up and held out his hand for me to take.

"Guess it is my turn to tell you my story." I smiled and took his hand.

"Yes it is."

**_Okay so here is the next chapter, hope it is alright for you guys :) Would love to hear your thoughts. _**


	5. Facing the Future

_**Disclaimer: I do not own x-men my imagination simply feeds of it :)**_

The next morning Erik, Charles and I took off on our journey in a small blue car. The two boys sat in the front and I sat in the back. I took advantage of having the black seat and therefor placed my pale legs encased in ripped black tights on the hard black car seats. I rested my head against the window and watched the sun struck country side through my black light sunglasses. The window was open a crack so my black strands of hair moved in the fast rhythm on the wind making me blow loose strands out of my mouth.

"So" I asked the boys in the front. "Where do we find the first mutant?"

"Well." Erik started and pulled out a heavy case file and shuffled through loose papers. He stared at it and glanced back at me for a brief second before putting the piece of paper away.

"Erik?" I prompted.

"A strip club."I jerked my gaze from the fast moving country side to Erik. With a swift movement I swivelled around so I was sitting in the middle seat and leaned forward to snatch the folder from Erik's grasp. I flung the folder open and went to the first loose piece of paper and saw the name of the mutant and where to find her. I shut it and ran my fingers over the smooth cover. "No way am I going into a strip club."

"I do apologize Zoe but we have to." Charles said flicking his eyes from me to the road ahead.

"Zoe we don't have a choice." Erik said hiding a cheeky smile. "It's not like we can decide where we find the mutants."

"Oh please." I said and rested my elbow on his shoulder "Don't pretend that you're not enjoying the fact that you can go into a strip club." I scoffed looking between the two men.

"Zoe I'm not." Erik replied meeting my gaze. "Trust me." I rolled my eyes and sat back in my seat biting my black painted nails.

"I don't have to come along though." I said in-between nibbles. "I mean you two can go along, put on your manly charm, get the mutant and then come back to where ever we are staying."

"And what would you be doing in that space of time?" Charles asked glancing back. I shrugged looking out the window.

"I don't know. Check into the hotel, read a book." I replied settling back down with my legs on the seats. I really hoped the CIA didn't mind that the seats of this blue car having scuff marks because of my combat boots.

"I guess that should be fine." Charles said.

Silence fell in the car. I bit my bottom lip, suddenly wondering what these new mutants would be like. Ever since my experience with Shaw I have had trust issues and in some way that made me not a people person. I can act pretty hostile towards others, putting them off. I drew my legs close to my chest and rested my chin on my knees.

"You'll be fine Zoe." Erik said, breaking the silence. It was as if he could read my mind. I smiled a little and lifted my gaze to look at the back of his head. He was dressed in a brown polo with cream pants. His brown hair was neatly combed back, not a hair out of order. He was perfection.

I looked down at myself and suddenly felt out of place. I was wearing black ripped tights, black combat boots, a light blue jean skirt that was scuffed at the edges and a loose ruby red V-neck top with my necklace slung around my neck. I played with my silver necklace as we drove along the never lasting rode.

* * *

Eventually I managed to convince the boys to stop for food at a local diner and we stopped for gas as well. It was around 7pm sharp when we arrived outside a grand looking hotel. The night was still and silent expect for the occasional breath of wind.

I stepped out of the small blue car and wrapped my arms around my shivering form. I closed the door and leaned against it, looking up at the building. It was beautiful. Made of a dark brown brick and enlaced with green vines. I smiled and tilted my head back as my eyes ventured up the side of the building.

"You alright?" My eyes shifted and looked at Charles who was standing by my side holding my brown suitcase. I gave him a small smile and nodded.

"Yes." I took my suitcase from his grip. The three of us headed up into the lobby which I found to be even more beautiful than the outside. Above our heads was an enormous gold chandelier with diamond droplets. I adverted my gaze down, past my shoes to the cream colored tiled floor. It was so clean that I could see my own reflection. I had big brown eyes and long black eyelashes which were so thick and dark there was no need for mascara. My black hair was cascading down my back, with small waves towards the ends.

Out of all the many places I had stayed at, this was the most memorable. I strolled over to the lobby which was open 24/7. Charles checked us in and we headed to our room.

The room was around two times the size, if not more than my room back at the CIA facility. There were three double beds that were backed up against the cream colored wall. I headed over to the bed closest to the balcony and shed my shoes to bury my toes in the deep plush carpet. The duvet of my bed was thick and white so I couldn't resist lying back down on it and felt the bed sink as Erik sat down next to me with his arm holding up his head.

"Making yourself at home?" He asked, looking down with his silver eyes. I couldn't help but smile and rolled to my side, propping my head up with my left hand.

"Well since you two both are going out, I might as well." I replied with a cheeky grin. He laughed and sat back up.

"So, boss." He said to Charles. "When do we leave?"

"Well. We might want to get changed into some night clothes and then I guess we're set." Charles said, unzipping his bag.

* * *

Once the two boys got dressed I felt like the luckiest girl alive to be sharing a room with the two of them. Charles was dressed in dark blue fitted jeans with a black jumper over a white shirt. Over that he was wearing a knee length black coat and shiny black shoes.

Erik looked like a true god. He wore black trousers with a white shirt and a fitted black suit, jacket and tie. Covering his silk brown hair was a black hat and on his feet were black boots that shined from the light above.

I stood up from the bed and straightened Erik's tie. He grinned down at me and stuffed his hand into his pockets. I walked over to Charles and placed both hands on his shoulders and smoothed out his jacket before moving back to look at the final product.

"Not bad boys..." I said and received dashing smiles from both men. "Be careful okay." I warned them with a look of concern and a tint of worry coming through my voice.

"We will." Charles replied walking towards me and placing both hands on my upper arms. "Be careful yourself, don't leave the hotel room." I nodded and his expression softened. "Right, Erik lets go." I waved the two boys of and in return received a lopsided smile from Erik, making my stomach flutter.

I headed over to the irresistible looking bed and collapsed onto the feather duvet. I ran my fingers over the soft fabric as I stared up into nothing. I had two options. Stay in the hotel like the boys wanted me to and order room service, or go out and explore this new place.

"Looks like I'm going for option two." I said out loud and jumped off the bed, opening my brown suitcase. I quickly grabbed my leather jacket which was placed neatly of top and tossed it over my shoulder grabbing the room key on the way out.

* * *

I hadn't walked very far when I heard the squealing of brakes. I came to a halt and my eyes darted to where a black van with tilted windows was rounding the corner and was coming in my direction. The car's front was pointed straight at me. I quickly stepped back and pressed my back against the wall waiting for the van to pass by. But it didn't. The black van came to a sudden stop and the door slid open with incredible force.

Before I could react a man zipped out of the car and was right beside me in a second. I turned my head and gazed into the eyes of my opponent. He had strong and rough features with dirty blond hair that was pulled back into a loose pony tail with strands hanging out framing his face. He placed a strong hand on my shoulder and nodded towards the car. I looked towards the mysterious black van and then back to him. I struck out and punched the side of his face but surprisingly the guy hardly moved. I stared at him, shocked and tried again but he caught my fist in his hand and smiled.

"What are you?" I asked and reached inside of his mind.

_A mutant, but don't worry I won't hurt you, Zoe _he thought, making me pull out of his mind and blink my eyes several times.

"How do you know my name?" I asked harshly. The guy dropped my closed fist and placed his hands in the air to show a sign on defence. I raised an eyebrow and dared to take a step closer. "Speak." I said in a snake like tone.

"Get in the van; don't lash out because one way or another you will get in and everything will be explained." He jumped into the van and outstretched his hand for me to take. I paused and bit my lip, not knowing what might be ahead of me. Half of me was yelling to get away from him, but the other half was telling me to go and that I would be safe. My curiosity won out, so without another moments thought I clasped his hand and he pulled me inside the dark van.

Once the door closed behind me the light flickered on and revealed to me 6 other Mutants. 2 Girls and 4 men, not including the driver or the guy who just pulled me in. I took a seat closest to the door and gripped the handle in case of any need of escape. My eyes darted around to every single one of the mutants who all stared at me with soft kind eyes. Except for one.

A man who sat behind the driver's seat was leaning forward resting his hand underneath his chin and moved it back and forth in a thinking motion. His deep, sapphire blue eyes stared deep into mine and his smug facade showed no sign of breaking as he got up and switched places with the mutant girl infornt of me. The man was dressed in dark blue jeans, a navy jumper with a warm looking grey shirt underneath which peeked out under the edges of the jumper and to top it off he was wearing a black coat with big round black and gold buttons, slightly undone. I couldn't help but bite my lip to keep from smiling and blushing, as the man who now sat directly in front of me was undeniable good looking and surprisingly sent waves of butterflies down to my stomach. I couldn't understand why he was having such an effect on me as usually I am not in the least moved by the appearance of any male, except for Erik of course. I leaned back in my seat trying to further myself from the male and in response he let up a smug smile and lent even closer.

"Don't be afraid." He said slowly, and breathed in as if he was taking in my scent.

"I'm not afraid of you." I spat at him but he showed no sign on moving.

"No?" He asked. "Then why did you lean back when I sat opposite you?" For that I had no answer and he left me with no choice but to stay seated and stare into his ocean colored eyes. I hated not having a comeback and not having one now made me grow frustrated.

"Why am I here?" I finally asked after a few moments of silence.

"You were the one who came in." He said, smiling. I scowled at him and crossed my arms over my chest. "No, I'm sorry that was unfair, the reason why you are here is because is you are supposed to be." My eyes flickered back to his, and I leaned forward trying to make him intimidated. Unfortunately it didn't work and he stayed his ground so it only resulted in our faces becoming closer.

"How about you stop talking riddles and just tell me why I am here so we can get down to biussness." I said in an annoyed tone.

"Alright." His elbows rested against his knees and his hand brought together into a fist holding his head up. "What if I were to say that there was a mutant," he waved to the rest of the mutants in the van and returned to me, "that could predict the future."

"Go on."

"Well you see, this mutant looked into our future and saw you." He pointed at me. "What we do here is protect mutants and save them from experimentation. Most of us have already been experimented on and have combined powers in results such as yourself." I shifted my weight and shook my head.

"No, I may have combined powers but not due to experimentation." I replied.

"Yes but you have been experimented on. I actually know for a fact that you were experimented on so they could transfer your powers into others." I paused and thought this over before giving my response.

"So are you saying that some other person is walking around with my mutation, my genes?" I asked in shock.

"No, not in your case. There are other corporations besides the one that you were at that specialize in mutant transformation. The one that you were in was more focused on starting a war then actually transferring mutant powers." I fell back out of breath.

"So what do you want with me?" I asked, staring up at the ceiling.

"Just to inform you. I know that you won't come with us tonight but you will sometime. And when you do you will not return to your loved ones, friends or family." I laughed.

"Wait are you asking me to join you?" I asked.

"No, not yet because we already know the answer to that question." He replied.

" So wait going back a step are you saying that when I join you I will be forced not to see my loved ones?" I asked fixing my eyes on his and matched his smug smile with my own.

"No, it will be your choice to not see them again but in doing so you will gain a new family." He replied.

"Great." I sighed. "So since I know that your mutation is not telling the future, what is it?"

"Can't you just read my mind?" Gosh this guy was good.

"Yes, but where would be the fun in that?" I asked and rolled my shoulders back.

"Well since you asked. I'm an illusionist."

"Oh."

"Yes, so I can make you see, hear; touch anything I want you to. Handy if I'm in need of money."

"So you're a magician?" I guessed.

"Well you could say that. I do it for the money and the amusement." He replied and flicked his head to get his side fringe out of his eyes.

"What can you guys do?" I asked looking around at the other people in the van, intrigued. A girl who sat very close to the illusionist rested her hand on my knee and I watched in amazement as her hand turned into the color and texture of my black tights.

"My name's Harriet and I can camouflage so I am basically a chameleon, I can change colour, pattern and texture whenever I want to" she said in a very sweet tone. "I was rescued before I could be experimented on" she continued shyly.

"Hi, I'm Kara and I control the weather and can manipulate people to a certain level" said the girl who switched places with the man in front of me at the moment. She had harsh features and made me not want to get on her bad side.

"I'm Casper" said a skinny man-boy, who looked no more then 19, with blonde hair, blue eyes and pale, icy looking skin. "I can control air and ice."

"Rodrigo." An older looking man around the age of 27, raised his hand and gave me a cheeky wave. His skin looked beautifully tanned. "My mutation is strength, and I also have eel like skin." I cocked my head in confusion, making him laugh. "Let me demonstrate." Before my eyes Rodrigo turned is dark tanned skin into silver. "Also," he added and moved forward poking Casper in his side, electrocuting him. This resulted in fits of laughter from everyone and a scream from Casper. "Makes Casper scream like a girl every time"

"Ignore him." My attention shifted to another male who had sandy blond hair and soft green eyes. "I'm Eddie and I have the earth element mixed with super good hearing. So Dan, if you could keep it down with the ladies."

"Wow, thanks for pointing that out infornt of our guest." The man with the ocean eyes, apparently called Dan, replied sarcastically. "Stop the car" he said, and the car came to a screeching halt. I braced myself in the hopes that I didn't come crashing down onto Dan. Luckily the stop was relatively smooth and the door opened within a second. The tall man who brought me in was standing outside holding the handle. He gave me a smile and I returned it with my own, before I turned my attention back to the illusionist, who was leaning in towards me. "Would you like to have dinner with me?" he asked his tone smooth. My eyes widened and I couldn't help but catch my breath. For some reason my mouth opened, and without consent from my brain, blurted out "Yes."

He was the first out of the car and stuck out his hand for me to take. I hesitated a moment before I took it. Stepping out into the street with my hand still on his, I looked up into the sky and stared at the stars twinkling above. I had never seen so many before in my life. The way they all shined and sparkled in the dark sky was mesmerizing. Then out of nowhere a shooting star appeared and zoomed across the sky in a flash.

"Beautiful isn't it" I said, closing my eyes and making a wish.

"Yes." He replied and dropped my hand. "My mutation can be very beautiful." My eyes burst open mid-wish and I spun around to meet his eyes.

"You mean you made me see that?" I asked. He nodded and I smacked his chest playfully, making him laugh. "By the way I never asked your name. I mean I know that it is Dan but that must be short for something."

"It's Daniel. Daniel Hunter."

"Well, Daniel Hunter, where to?" I asked but before he could answer a high pitched scream rang through the air.

"Never a dull moment." He said and took off into a run with me right behind him. I followed him into a dark alley where a girl dressed in a raggy looking dress was on the floor crying while two large men looming over her. Daniel stopped and raised his finger to his lips in a way of telling me to be quiet. I nodded and watched as Daniel slowly crept up behind the two men. He then grabbed both of the men's heads and slammed them together, making them go down.

I took the opportunity to run to the girl. I bent down next to her and placed both hands on the side of her shoulders and rubbed my hands up and down her arms to stop her shaking.

" 's okay, it's okay." I repeat and the girl melted into me and grabbed onto my arms tightly. I stroked her tangled hair, trying to calm down her breathing and pushed myself into her head.

The first thing that I found out was that these men were not coming to rape her but to collect her for experimentation. I dug deeper and quickly found out that she was a mutant with the ability to tell when one was lying to her. Handy, I thought to myself and then quickly scolded myself for getting off task. I found out that she had been held at a facility and had escaped which was the reason on why these men are here to take her back. Well not on my watch, I thought to myself and pulled out of her head and met Daniels eyes.

"She's a mutant. She escaped and these men were trying to get her back." I said and felt the grip of the girls hands tighten on me.

"As I a dull moment." Daniel said. Suddenly from behind him both of the men stood up and cracked their necks, wiping the blood off their hard faces.

"DANIEL!" I screamed as one of them punched the side of Daniel's head. I let out a scream and watched in horror as one of the men held Daniel up and the other punched him the stomach. Somehow I managed to unpeeled myself from the whimpering girl and I lunged myself at the man who was punching Daniel and clawed at his face. The man laughed and grabbed me by the throat, lifting me up in the air.

"You want to play, little girl?" He asked and then threw me down and turned back to Daniel who was fighting the other man. I gasped for breath now that he was gone and peered through my tangled hair at Daniel who was really taking a beating.

"Screw this." I said aloud and stood up with my hair covering half of my face. Slowly I lit my arms up with fire all the way to my shoulders as I felt my body form change. The two men turned around looked at me with fake smiles on there faces. "Shows over." I sneered and jumped up in the air spinning my body like a tornado and lit my whole body of fire before smacking both men in the face. I landed neatly and looked up seeing the men screaming and clutching their burning faces.

"Spiders!" One screamed and scrambled around to his feet with tears spilling from his face.

"Snakes!" The other screamed with similar expressions of his face. I looked to my side and saw Daniel sitting down against the wall breathing hard and keeping eye contact with the two men. He was creating their worst nightmares come true. I could see that the more power he used the weaker he was becoming making my protective instincts kick in. I ran towards him and cupped his face and forced his eyes to look at mine.

"Stop." I said softly. "You've done enough." He nodded and smiled his thanks.

"Yea. I guess you never know when enough is, with a past like mine." He said shaking it off and getting to his feet walking towards the mutant girl on the floor who was now unconscious. I got to my feet and brushed of the dust from my skirt and walked over to where Daniel was, ignoring the fact that the two men had just run off with burn marks on the side of their faces.

"Is she going to be alright?" I asked Daniel.

"Yes. I'll get in contact with the others and we'll take care of her." I nodded silently and leaned my back against the cool stone wall and looked down at Daniel with my arms crossed over my chest.

"I never realized." I chocked. "I never realized how many mutants were actually getting experimented on." I continued running my fingers through my hair. "Where you ever experimented on?" I asked looking down at him. His big blue eyes looked up from the girl to me and turned soft instead of the intense hard gaze that I had experienced from the first moment I met him.

"Yes. I was captured when I was twelve and taken to a secret location where I was kept for 7 years. They tried sampling my mutation and mixing my powers with other samples but fortunately for me they were unable to transfer any of their samples into my blood stream. I'm still a pure mutant, not mixed with someone else's unique mutation "he said quickly, as if he was trying to not relive his past.

"So what happened after the 7 years?" I asked intrigued. "And how old are you exactly?"

"Well I came up with a plan to break myself out as well as some other mutants. Rodrigo and Harriet where part of that group of mutants. Ever since then we have been on run and during our time away we have tried to make more rescue attempts." He said. "And I'm 24 but I don't see why that's important."

"Have any succeeded?" I asked ignoring the comment on his age.

"Yes, but we were only able to get a few mutants out and that is why we need you if we want to make these breakouts at a higher scale." He said with a small smile creeping up his lips.

"Why me though?" I asked rolling my eyes as he stood up and came face to face with me, not daring to blink at his now intense stare.

"You'll have to wait and see, because I know for a fact that you will not come with me tonight but you will, and only when you do will I tell you why." My eyebrows pulled together in a scowl, a little sick of his riddles.

"I guess you have a point for not trusting me, mystery man." I replied, acting cocky. He smiled back and took one step closer to me. I felt my body stiffen.

"I best get going." He said with his lips only inches away from mine. "And in case you were wondering this won't be the last time you see me." Before I could respond his hand snaked around the back of my neck and pulled me against him. He tilted my head back just a little and pressed his lips against mine. Some voice inside me was screaming to push him away and run back to Erik but at the same time I lost track of the universe as we kissed. He pulled back just as quickly as he pulled me in,leaving me breathless and wide-eyed. Casually, like nothing had happened he took several steps back saluted me with a smug grin before picking up the girl in his arms and walking away.

"Hey!" I called after him. "Where are you going?" He turned and walked backwards facing me.

"Weren't you listening before?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "Never a dull moment." He turned around and made his way out of the dark alley and disappeared around the corner.

Once he was gone I kicked a metal can and ran my fingers through my messy hair. What had just happened? I asked myself as I paced back and forth, taking in tonight's events. So, I went for a walk and then got pulled into a van by a complete stranger, met a bunch of mutants, found out that in the future I would be joining them in saving mutants from experimentation in the meantime leaving my family and loved ones. Oh and I also kissed Daniel Hunter.

"God." I said aloud. I honestly had no idea why I was feeling attraction towards a smug illusionist who had just kissed me, without permission in an alleyway. I gripped my head with my hands and leaned back against the stone wall. I wasn't sure what to feel. Part of my future had been revealed to me and in some ways it seemed exciting. Being able to save others like me would truly be amazing, but the fact that Erik wouldn't be there scared the crap out of me. Erik! I had no idea what the time was but I knew I should be getting back before Erik and Charles got back to the hotel.

I kicked off the wall with my combat boot and took off into a run out of the alley. I looked around, taking in my surroundings and pushed through the packs of people following the street signs to where the hotel would be situated.

When I finally got to the entrance I was panting and could not help but bend down and place my hands on my ripped tights to gain back some of the air I lost. I took in one more breath of air and straightened my back, running my fingers through my hair and fixed my jacket before entering the grand hotel and headed up to the room. Thankfully it was still empty so I collapsed onto my bed and buried my head in the sheet, soon falling asleep.

* * *

By the time I woke up sun was streaming through the white curtains. I rolled off my bed and stumbled on my feet, waiting for my balance and my eyesight to return.

"Morning sunshine." I blinked my eyes again and they began focused on Erik, standing by the minibar holding a newspaper. A smile lit up my face and I couldn't help but walk over to him and throw my arms around his neck. "Zoe." Erik said and combed my knotty hair with his fingers. "Hope you didn't have too much fun without me." I pulled back a little, keeping my arms around his neck.

"Nope." I replied keeping secret the events that happened last night. "No fun here." I said softly and moved my face closer so that our faces were nearly touching. I breathed in his sent and re-memorized his extraordinary features. "I missed you though." I continued softly, and his face slowly moved closer to mine with our lips only centimetres away from touching. I fixed my eyes on his lips and I could tell that he was doing the same with me. But before we could make contact he moved away and walked past me, leaving me breathless, to go and take a seat on his bed and reopen his newspaper.

"Charles is downstairs having breakfast with the new mutant." He said as he turned the page of his newspaper. "He asked me to come but I decided to wait for you."

"Is that so?" I asked cocking my head to the side and grazing my fingers over the wooden table where Erik had been leaning against.

"Yes. Why, are you surprised?" He asked putting down the newspaper and running his hands over his brown pants.

"No." I replied and headed over to my suitcase and pulled out a black pleated skirt and a white V-neck top. I held the clothes up infornt of me and pictured myself in the clothes via the mirror. From behind I could see Erik approach me and ever so slowly he put his hands on my shoulders and stared at our reflection.

"You'll look exceptional in whatever you wear." He said in a smooth tone, making me blush furiously.

"Yes, well I need to take my injection first before you can make that compliment truthfully" I said, and tried to move away to the bathroom but Erik grabbed wrist and pulled me towards him, placing my hand on his chest.

"If I'd look like you I wouldn't change a thing." He said softly, making my heart melt and my eyes shine.

"Easy for you to say." I replied teasing, covering up my flustered self and pulled my hand away. "Your mutation is invisible and secondly you're a guy" I continued, brining a smirk to Erik's face. "I'll be around 5 minutes and then we can go down." I headed to the bathroom, grabbing my clothes to get changed into my new form.

Once ready I stepped out of the steamy bathroom to receive a handsome smile from Erik before going down stairs and meeting Charles and the new Mutant for breakfast. As we approached the table Charles gave us a smile and stood up pulling out my chair for me.

"Good morning Charles." I said with a large grin before turning to the new mutant. She had dark tanned skin with medium length black curly hair. I had to admit she was pretty but for some reason I had an uneasy feeling about her. "And you must be…?"

"Angel. My name is Angel." I could help but snicker at her name. What angel would work at a strip club? I thought as I took my seat in-between Erik and Charles and dug into my banana and blueberry pancakes.

"Angel's mutation is that she is able to fly, she has wings and she can also spit balls of fire." Charles said. "I'm sorry to make this meeting brief for you two girls but the CIA has arrived to take Angel to the facility." I couldn't help but smile at Charles politeness.

"No that's alright." I said to Charles. "It was nice to meet you Angel."

"Yeah, you to." She said before two CIA agents came and took her between them, walking her out of the room.

"So how did last night go?" I asked the boys. "Meet any nice girls?"

"No, this was strictly professional." Charles said giving Erik a side glance.

"Yes and besides why would I need any other girl at my side when I have you." Erik added on sweetly making my cheeks turn as pink as my guava juice and the thoughts of the kiss that I shared last night with Daniel disappear -for now at least.

"So, where to next?"

_**Authors Note: Sorry for the late update! I have been so busy with my speech exam and first week back at school! I hope this chapter was worth the wait! All reviews are highly appreciated and I would love to here your thoughts on the new character! xox**_


	6. Midnight in Paris

**_Disclaimer: I do now own x-men_**

Finding the next mutant took a whole lot longer than we expected it to. I leaned against a brick wall whilst sucking my straw delivering a gulp of icy caramel mix into my mouth. My eyes peered into every single one of the taxi's that pulled up, searching for the right driver, but so far, no such luck.

"Does anyone have a time machine?" I asked as I placed my head against Erik's shoulder. Erik shifted his position and put his right arm loosely around my shoulders, making me look up into his silver eyes and smile.

"Sadly, no." He replied smoothly. "Charles, any ideas?" Erik asked shifting his gaze to Charles who was silently shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"No. Unfortunately all we can do is wait." He said, stuffing his hands into his black coat. I was about to reply when a taxi stopped right in front of us and a familiar man stepped out. He was wearing a black jumper, dark blue jeans and a black coat which was undone. His fringe blew slightly to the side revealing his ocean blue eyes that clasped on mine. I couldn't help but smile when his lips pulled up in that smug smile, and I relived our kiss in the alleyway. His eyes stayed on mine for a second to short before he gave me a nod and walked past me, making sure to nock into my shoulder, meanwhile grazing his finger tips with mine. I shivered slightly, and I could tell that he was enjoying his effect on me.

"You alright Zoe?" Erik asked facing me, placing both of his hands on my shoulders and looking down searching for my gaze.

"Yep." I replied in a calm tone looking back to where Daniel was swaggering up to a crossroad, his hands in his pockets and certainly not looking back.

"Ignore him. Some men just can't keep their distance." Erik muttered with a hint of possession before slipping his hand in mine and giving it a squeeze. I leaned into him and inhaled deeply.

"Ah, Zoe, Erik." I looked up at Charles who was looking up at us from the taxi that Daniel had emerged from with the back door open. "Looks like we've got our ride." A smile lit up my face and I jumped into the back seat after Charles. I ended up in the middle of the two boys, their arms both slung over the back of their seats.

"Where to fellas." Asked the taxi driver while looking through the top mirror.

"Richmond, Virginia please." Erik said from my side sharing a glance with Charles.

"Right," The mutant taxi driver replied, casting him a confused glance through the top mirror. "So you want the airport. Or the station..?"

"No." Charles said interrupting the man and looked to both me and Erik before speaking up again. "We were rather hoping you would take us all the way." I grinned at the surprise on the man's face.

"That's a six hour drive." He said with a warning tone in his voice as he watched our expressions on our face.

"Well." I said leaning forward "That will give us plenty on time to talk." Erik flicked his hand to the reader in front and made it flip down, stopping the fare from going up. The taxi driver turned around meeting all of our eyes.

_Don't worry we're here to help._

I said in his mind, which only resulted in his eyes growing wider. I received a nudge and frown from Charles directed at me and Erik.

"Too much." I asked shrugging and turned to Erik so we could share mischievous smiles. "So best get driving because we have a lot to tell you." I piped in and then sat back, leaning into Erik and placing my legs over Charles, making myself comfortable with the long trip ahead.

* * *

The next Mutant was in the Government's hands, which for normal people would make it impossible to reach him. Luckily for us we were with the CIA and easily made it passed security.

"What the hell does the government want with a guy like Alex Summers?" asked the warden holding a single metal key, even though Erik could have easily unlocked the cell within a second. Of course he didn't know that. He stood outside the door and faced Charles, Erik and I with a warning look in his eyes.

"Sorry but that is information is private." I said sweetly and linked my arm into Erik's.

"Well, I hope you're not planning on putting him with others." I raised my left eyebrow at the Wardens words.

"And why's that?" Erik asked curiously from my side, meanwhile meeting my eyes and looking slightly concerned.

"He's one of the first guys I have met who actually prefers solitary confinement." I returned Erik's concerned look and gave him a wary smile.

"Shouldn't be a problem." Charles said in a tough voice, even though I could tell from his thoughts that he was slightly nervous to meet this new mutant. "Just give as a few moments to talk to him privately." The warden looked at all three of us and I heard that in his mind he was questioning our sanity.

"Are you sure?" He asked. "You did hear when I said…"

"Crystal clear sir." I said interrupting him. The warden gave us all one last warning look before opening the door and took a few steps back unveiling the mutant to our curious eyes.

"When you are done just give me a shout" The warden said before walking away with key in hand. I tightened my grip on Erik's arm and followed Charles into the cell who took a seat next to Alex. Alex had blond hair and an eye-opening pair of muscular arms which did not create girlish butterflies in my stomach like it would other girls. I took my spot next to Erik, leaning against the cold metal wall and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Hello Alex." Charles said, starting the conversation. The blonde haired boy gave us all a suspicious look before returning back to Charles's soft gaze.

"Who are you all?" He asked defensively.

"I'm Charles and this is Zoe and Erik." Charles gestured towards me and Erik and we in return gave Alex dashing smiles. "We're here to offer you a chance to get out of here, and to give you an opportunity to learn how to control or further your powers."

"How do you know about me?" Alex asked curiously. I stepped forward and bent down in front of Alex. I could feel Erik's protective gaze watching both of us as I reached forward and placed my hands on the side of his face. He flinched at first but did not pull away. I closed my eyes.

_Don't be afraid Alex. There are more people then you know who are like you. We're just here to help you._

I removed my hands and watched with amusement as his eyes widened with surprise. I stepped back towards Erik and waited for a verbal response from Alex. Instead it was Charles who broke the silence first.

"Give us a chance Alex. Not only can we get you out of here but we can also take you to a place where there are others like you. Others like us, who understand what it's like to deal with your powers." Charles stood up and outstretched his hand for Alex to take. We all watched Alex hesitate and his hand wavered before gripping Charles tightly and pulling himself up with Charles help. His face was a mix of emotions and I felt his conflicting thoughts beat through his brain.

"Alright. I'm all yours."

* * *

Our fourth and final mutant that we would be collecting was located in an aquarium which for me was most unnerving. Being in the water made me very uncomfortable, I hated the sea and everything in it, so for me to step into a place that was surrounded by water took an impossible amount of courage which I mustered with difficulty.

As we walked through the aquarium my feet dragged across the floor, not at all like my normal, light steps. I wrapped my arms around my pale arms and shivered, with not cold but fear as I ventured deeper into the building with the two boys in front of me, entranced in a riveting conversation about the mutants. Eventually I stopped in front of a large tank containing thousands of silver fishes.

"Crazy huh." Said a voice, breaking through the silence that filled the aquarium. I turned to my right catching the pale blue eyes of a ginger teenaged boy.

"Sorry?" I asked.

"You like fish I like fish, maybe we should get a bit together and talk about it." I took a few steps back and a smug smile played over his lips that was nowhere near as good as Daniels. I looked him up and down and gave him a sweet smile in return.

"I'm sorry but I would rather go out with the fish." I pointed to the fish, before spinning around and making my way over to Erik and Charles who stared at me with amused looks. "What?" I asked as I approached them. Erik pointed behind me and I spun around to see that all the fish had disappeared.

"These fish?" Asked the ginger boy with a foolishly large grin on his face. I matched his smile with no difficulty as I walked back to him and tapped my nails on the glass of the tank, waiting for Erik and Charles to come over.

"Nice trick." I replied in a smooth, confident tone. "But I know people who can do better." On cue again, all the metal in the room raised, bringing the ginger mutant to look around, impressed.

"Let's talk."

* * *

After collecting the ginger boy we all headed to check into our new hotel and I was pleased to see that I had my own room and the three males had to share. This hotel was nowhere as beautiful as the first one but it still had a beautiful character that only increased my happiness and excitement on this adventure.

It was around 7pm when I headed next door to the boy's room wearing a simple black flare skirt and a khaki top. I knocked on the door softly and to my surprise Erik was quick to open it. He stood there in nothing but a towel and I blushed furiously and turned around to face my own door, biting my lip hard to keep from laughing.

"Hold on just a second." I heard him say from behind. I continued to listen and heard his footsteps and the moving of fabric behind me. "Okay." I turned around to see him wearing a warm looking blackish brownish dressing grown.

"Sorry for intruding." I muttered stepping into his room, which he shared with the two other boys. My gaze flickered over to where the ginger guy was sitting up on his bed, giving me a goofy look. My eyes travelled to the bathroom where I could hear the water running, indicating that Charles was the one occupying it. After hesitating I placed my hand on Erik's arm escorting him to the other side of the room so the new mutant couldn't hear.

"So, um I was wondering if you fancied going dancing." I asked shyly, brushing some hair behind my ear.

"Dancing?" He questioned. "What now?" I nodded.

" I've been to this part of the word and I know this place that we could go to. It would also be a nice way to end the trip." I watched as Erik thought this through.

"Would they others be coming with us?" He asked moving towards his wardrobe and opening it.

"If you want them to, they can." I said, hoping he wouldn't. He turned around and smiled.

"No it's ok." he said, granting my wish before turning back around to his closet. "It would be good to have some time just me and you." A smile lit up on my face and I did a little spin while he wasn't looking.

"Okay! Meet me in front in about 30 minutes!" I exclaimed and rushed back to my room to get changed. I decided on a black dress that fell down to my knees. It was loose on the bottom, had a round neck enlaced with black beads and a butterfly created out of dark blue and turquoise sequences. I brushed my hair, which had formed curls from the day before and put a black lace band with a blue flower on the side on top of my head. To finish the look, I put on black heels, applied lipstick and grey eye shadow.

After a nod of approval from my reflection I not so gracefully rushed out to the front of the hotel where I found Erik waiting for me. My running turned into a slow walk as I took in his appearance. He was dressed in handsome black pants with a white shirt covered with a black leather jacket. He leaned against a gleaming black motorcycle making him look irresistible to both the human and mutant eye. After I took in a deep breath I tapped him twice on the shoulder with a single finger, making him turn around and meet my eyes. A smile formed over my lips as his eyes widened at my appearance, bringing a rosy tint to my cheeks.

"You look." He stuttered as he took me in. "Beautiful."

"Thanks, you look handsome." I said and made my way over to the motorcycle. "So am I driving or are you?"

"A woman never drives while looking like a princess." I laughed and watched as he placed the helmet on and took his spot in the front of the motorcycle. "Where are we going?" He asked.

"There's a club near here called midnight in Paris, I'll direct you." I replied putting on my own helmet, minding my hair so that I would not have helmet hair when I took it off.

"By the way, did you inform Charles of our sudden disappearance?" He asked with a playful tone lacing his words.

"Nope, but I guess that is part of the adventure." I replied smiling as I got on behind him, pulling my dress up and gripping his waist tightly. Erik looked back and laughed before starting the engine and we took off into the secretive night.

* * *

Eventually we stopped outside a charming looking night club where people were going in dressed in clothes that I only imagined seeing in Vogue magazine.

Erik parked the motorcycle a block away in front of a large park covered in leaves of orange and brown. Somehow I managed to release Erik from my hold and watched him get off and remove his helmet, which had no effect on his soft brown hair. I copied his actions and my hands admidiatly flew to my hair

"Is my hair okay?" I asked with slight concern and panic.

"Perfection." He said and held out his arm for me to take which I did with pleasure. I stayed close to him as we walked to the club, careful not to trip or embarrass myself in front of him.

"You look beautiful." He said as we stopped outside the club in the line.

"Thank you." I said meeting his grey eyes. "So do you." He laughed. "What?" I asked. "Men can be beautiful." I said simply, making him continue his controlled fit of laughter.

"And that is why I like you so much." His words at fist enlightened me with happiness but then sunk at the realization that he didn't say love.

"Good evening!" Exclaimed a lady dressed in a fine robe inside the entrance, breaking me out of my train of thought. "Welcome to midnight in Paris" I gave her a small nod and both Erik and I followed her deep inside. I was so overcome by where I was as I had never actually been to this place. My friend Anastasia constantly talked about it and I could hardly believe that I was actually here with the man I loved. Erik placed his hand gently on the small of my back, sending shivers up and down my spine.

"Oh my, what a beautiful dress." The lady said sweetly, warmth all across her vibrate face.

"Why thank you." I replied.

"Please follow me and take some Champaign." Both Erik and I did as we were told and in an instant a glass of Champaign was in my hand.

"This place is so beautiful." I said looking around, mesmerized. Erik smiled and placed his drink down on a free table and took my glass from me to put it next to his.

"Should we dance?" He asked. I nodded nervously and took his hand as he led me to the dance floor. Like a gentlemen Erik placed one arm around my waist and slowly pulled me in close. I then wrapped my arm around his shoulder and the other holding his hand close to our hearts, resting my head against his chest as we slowly moved to the soft music.

"I don't know why." Erik said softly in my ear. "I don't know why but I have this feeling as if." He paused. "As if I can't believe this is happening." I laughed into his chest and held on tighter.

"I know how you feel." I said. "Don't you just wish that you could run away from everything?" I asked.

"Yes. All the time." He replied in my hair.

"You know what my dream is?" I asked pulling away a little and looking up.

"What?" He asked as he spun me around and then pulled me back into his embrace.

"To run away to France." I said smiling, "with you. To live safe forever." I heard him laugh once and his grip on my waist tightens.

"Great dream." He dipped me back in a swift movement and pulled me back up slowly, our faces inches from each other.

We danced for what seemed like hours. To upbeat and slow songs. I felt like I was in a dream and any second I would wake up. But this time it wasn't. This time I was in reality and this was really happening. A new song was about to start when someone cleared their voice behind me, and I pulled away from Erik and turned slightly to see a new couple facing us.

There in front of me stood Daniel. He was dressed in a black suit with a dark blue navy shirt that was almost as entrancing as the deep pools of water he had for eyes. Next to him stood Harriet. She was dressed in a beautiful cream-colored dress with a gold thick ribbon tied around her head like a headband.

"Hello beautiful. I believe I met you earlier this week. What a pleasure it is to see you again." Daniel said smoothly and kissed my hand lightly, his eyes full of mockery. "My name is Daniel Hunter."

"Pleasure to meet you Daniel. My name is Zoe. The pleasure is all mine." I replied, head held high, but at the same time I was trying to avoid Erik's attempts at eye contact.

"Yes. I'm sure it is." His smug grin grew wider. "I was hoping you would join me for a dance." I watched as Daniels eyes met Erik's and I got the courage to turn and catch a look of confusion and concern from Erik, mixed with the slightest hint of animosity. "That's if it is alright with your date…" Daniel enunciated every syllable perfectly, all the while making it seem less of a question.

"Um, yes I think it would be fine." I said and managed to catch Erik's gaze again. "Erik?"

"Yes." He said keeping a steady gaze fixed on Daniel. "You can have Zoe and I can have…"

"Harriet." Harriet said and pulled out her hand for Erik to kiss, which in turn made my insides boil. How dare his lips touch her hand. But before I could say or do anything, Daniels hand found mine and led me away from Erik.

Once he stopped moving his fingers tightened around mine and pulled my hands up to rest it on his shoulders. He placed his hands around my waist, and we were dancing face to face.

The music started up and he moved us gracefully around the dance floor. His hands expertly switched from my waist to my hands, and then my waist again. As we danced I kept one eye on Daniel and one eye out for Erik, but as the song progressed my eyes shifted focus, as I was lost in Daniel's ocean eyes, and receiving another famous smile in doing so. The pace quickened forcing me to raise my arms and Daniels hands to tighten around my waist lifting me up high. I tilted my head back and parted my lips, looking up at the chandelier that hung perfectly above us. Slowly Daniel brought me down. Sliding his hands up my body and our lips inches away from touching. My feet placed firmly on the ground once more and my breath quickened even more at Daniels closeness. Memories of the night in the alley flooded my mind and all that came into view was his eyes, Erik pushed out of my mind for the moment. But before anything could happen Daniel was shoved away from me. My fingers reached for him but strong and steady hands held me back, and when I turned around I was faced with Erik, trembling with fury. Metal things around us started to shake and quiver.

"Don't you ever touch her like that!" Erik sneered viciously at Daniel, who was still on the floor, leaning back on his hands with his never disappearing smug façade.

"Erik!" I exclaimed and clawed at his arm. "Erik it was just a dance." I pulled Erik's shoulders so he could look at me instead of Daniel.

"It looked like he wanted more than just a dance." Erik barked.

"And why does that disturb you?" I asked, getting suddenly angry. "What business is it of yours? It's not like you want anything else than a dance." With that I shoved at his chest and pushed my way out of the club, tears welling up in my eyes but I angrily wiped them away. I could hear hurried footsteps behind me as I turned the corner to where the motorbike would be. I was about two feet away when a firm hand grabbed at my wrist and spun me around straight into Erik's chest.

"Let me go." I protested and tried to rip myself free. But his grip was too strong so I gave up and instead faced his eyes with a strong look of anger. "Erik let me go." I said firmly.

"Not until you tell me what that was about."

"Like you don't know?" I asked.

"I will if you tell me." Erik's voice softened but that didn't help at all. Damn his cluelessness, why couldn't he see! I let out a strangled yell of anger.

"God Erik you're so blind! What do I have to do to make you see?!"

All those years of supressed wanting and searching exploded, and I pulled him in, not giving a damn anymore about what would happen next. Our lips clashed and after a moment he kissed back. My hands gripped his neck and curled into his hair, and his hands found my face and cradled it softly. I poured all my emotions into the kiss, desperately trying to make him understand my love for him. My head felt light and all I could think of were his soft lips against mine, and that I never wanted this moment to end. As our kiss deepened I let out a shallow breath, and suddenly he pulled away, his hands still holding my face. His pupils were blown and he gasped for breath. I was too terrified to even break his telepathic block and skirt his thoughts to find out what he was thinking.

He stepped away from me as if in shock. I could see in his face that he was still reeling from what had happened. One hand racked through his hair as he looked away from me, and a look of agony crossed his face.

" Zoe, I… I ... I'm sorry. I can't… it's just you're…. so young, and I've, I've been like a brother to you since we were little…"

His eyes pleaded with me to understand, but I couldn't. I knew he cared about me, I felt it in that kiss. I could see it now in his eyes! Why was he telling me the opposite?!

He backed away, his face terrified and his eyes misty. _I'm so sorry _he mouthed, shaking his head and then he turned and ran. I took a step to follow him, but then turned the other way as I tried to run, run far away but I couldn't see because tears were streaming down my face. I tripped on a root and fell, sobbing, to my knees at the base of a tree.

I don't know how long I stayed there. I stayed until my eyes held no more water. They were replaced by numbness, and I really couldn't tell which one was worse. I walked around and around the park trying to make sense of my thoughts and not quite managing. I started to question everything, every touch, every look I've ever gotten from him. Could he really not care about me at all? Was I just a game to him, leading me on, telling me I'm beautiful, getting all possessive and then leaving me in an alley like he didn't want to ever see me again?

Numbness gave way to anger again, even though I knew the gaping hole in my heart would never fill. I was better than this. Get yourself together Zoe Nimitiz! Look at you, falling apart like this! You cannot let him see how much he hurt you! I can complete this mission, and ignore this ever happened. Just act like I never cared, and this night was just a big confused mistake.

I made my way out of the park, and walked in the direction of the hotel. I didn't trust myself to drive the bike just yet, so I left it parked where it was. There was no one in the lobby, and the clock on the wall told me it was 3:47 in the morning. I took the stairs up to my room and took a cold shower to clear my head. I lay awake on my bead knowing that no way in a million years would I get any sleep this morning. I just waited till it was officially time for breakfast, injected myself with another dose of serum and then put on a faded-pink dress, a colour I would normally never have chosen, but I was so out of it I didn't really care. I grasped and had a slight panic attack as I ran through countless scenarios that could happen when I walked into the dining room. Shaking my head, I took a deep breath to calm myself and opened the door.

_**Authors Note: So here is the next chapter! I hope you all like it and I can't wait to hear what you all think! Your reviews make my day :) xox **_

_**Also for my readers in New Zealand who are in Wellington or Seddon I hope you are all safe from the earthqauke as I know that it definatly gave me a scare!**_

_**xox**_


	7. Authors Note

Hi everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the last chapter

Anyways, unfortunately my laptop screen broke and won't get fixed until two weeks from now! So please tell me if you want another chapter soon and I can write it at school in my spare time! Don't be afraid to make yourselves known! Thank you to all my readers

Love you all!

Xox


	8. Dreams

**I do not own anything to do with x-men**

**Authors Note: Sorry for the late update, I hope you all enjoy the chapter and please review and tell me if I am on the right track and if you have any suggestions or just want to say hi :) Anyways hope you enjoy**

I sat in the car resting my head against the seat, staring out the window but not really seeing anything. Unfortunately I had to share the backseat with the ginger mutant, and therefore I couldn't stretch out my legs. I fidgeted with the hem of my pink dress and took in the sun struck countryside. For some reason I didn't see it as beautiful as it looked the last time. In irritation I turned my head away and observed the ginger mutant. He was dressed in loose-fitting blue jeans with a shapeless grey t-shirt. He had a permanent goofy grin plastered on his face and raised his left eyebrow when he caught me watching him. I exhaled, not knowing where to look so I fixed my eyes on the back of the person sitting in front of me. Which just happened to be Erik.

I didn't even know how to begin organizing my thoughts about him, and I was still too upset to try, so instead I let my eyes travel on the features I had memorized so well by now. His brown hair moved with the soft breeze, and his irresistible aura filled the whole car and it made my blood boil and stomach flutter.

A few countryside's later the dead silence in the car was taking its effect on me. I hated silence, I was never the type of person who liked to stay quiet and watch the scenery go by. I was a girl of action, always diving into people's minds and fighting my way through the world both physically and mentally. But today I didn't have enough of me left to hold a conversation with the ginger, or break Erik's barrier to find out what was on his mind. I wondered if I wanted to know.

In frustration I sunk further into the soft car seat and closed my eyes in hopes to escape this near death of silence. I squeezed my eyes tightly and waited for sleep to consume me, for the dreams to wrap me in their arms and take me to a world where no darkness was present. So I waited for my savoir, listening to the soft click on Erik's watch, waiting, waiting and waiting. Finally sleep claimed me, and to my surprise I found myself with Daniel.

I stood with Daniel in the dim night club; it was just as I remembered; only it was just us in the tranquil room. Daniel leaned against the cream stone of the fireplace with his hands causally shoved into his pockets. He peeped up at me and flicked his eyes from my feet all the way up my body to my face.

"You took your time getting here." he flicked his hair out of his deep sapphire eyes. "I was getting impatient." Instinctively, I brushed my black hair behind my ear and then crossed my arms over my chest. "Lovely choice of dress, that pink one didn't suit you at all." I frowned, and then looked down. I hadn't noticed my clothing changed. I wore a black dress that was tight around my upper body and then formed out in soft pleats that reached down to just above my knees. My feet where enveloped in black ankle boots with small golden buckles on either side. The necklace I always wore was safely around my neck and a golden charm bracelet was wound perfectly around my wrist.

I shifted my gaze back up at Daniel and studied the way his beautiful brown hair dangled just before his eyes, giving me a full view of his precious eyes. He was dressed in black suit pants, black boots, and a white shirt that had the first few buttons undone. His shirt sleeves where rolled up neatly to his elbows exposing his lean, muscular arms.

"How is this happening?" I asked, confusion written all over my face. Daniel pulled up a smug smile and shrugged.

"It's my dream." he said smoothly.

"No." I protested, "It's my dream."

"Are you sure?" He asked pushing off the fire place and slowly walking towards me.

"I... I.. I don't know."

Daniel continued to walk closer and he only stopped when his face was inches, no, centimetres from mine. Carefully he leaned forward and brushed my hair behind my ears, and I heard myself catch a breath. I could feel his soft breathing and his lips move against the tender skin of my ear.

"You're not the only one who has more than one mutation." I pulled back and searched his eyes for answers.

"But you said you were never successfully experimented on, that you were a pure mutant."

"For a girl who walks around with such grace and such determination to figure out the facts, you're not very good at jumping to conclusions." I scowled at him in frustration. "I have a double mutation. I am still a pure mutant. My guess is that they couldn't successfully transfer my mutation because it was too complex. Probably the same with you."

"So what's your other mutation, you can communicate with others in dreams?"

"Ah yes you could say that." a smile pulled at his lips, "I can draw you into a dream once you fall asleep. I can bring them into my own world and I decide when they leave. Unless of course something else wakes you up." I let this information sink in.

"So you're an illusionist AND a dream creator?"

"Yes, well put." a smile crawled up my lips.

"You're exceptional." I said stealing Erik's favourite word. Stupid, to think of him, because now he captured my thoughts, and I ran my hand up and down my bare arm, looking around the club where we had danced. I felt Daniels heavy gaze on mine and snapped out of my thoughts to face him. I frowned. "What?"

"Your upset." It was an observation, not a question. I let out a heavy sigh.

"Last night, after Erik and I left, I kissed him." Daniels face stayed as is, not showing any surprise or jealously. I wasn't sure why I was telling Daniel this but something about him just made me feel safe, like a could trust him, he also had a controlling power to make be both physically and psychologically attracted to him, I wonder if he actually had a triple mutation? Was that possible?

"Did he kiss you back?"

"Yes but..."

Daniel's gaze pierced mine and I trailed off. His expression was a puzzle I could not seem to solve. After a moment he shook his head and smiled coyly. "So." he moved closer and laced his fingers with mine, "Where we're we last night?"

I caught my breath at the reminder, but before I could protest Daniel's hand wrapped around my waist and pulled me in tightly, my free hand pressed against his chest, gasping at the closeness of our bodies. Music suddenly filled the room and we began our dance. Like last time Daniels hands were masters at dancing. They switched from my waist to my hands and then to my waist where he lifted me up into the air. I placed my feet on his waist and looked down into his eyes, panting heavily. Daniel then slowly dipped me back in a circle before snapped me back up. His strong hands lifted me up from his waist and placed me on the floor before smoothly spinning me around and then pulling be back.

"What is this?" I asked him, his breaths warming my face, and mine coming in shallow gasps .

"The future."

I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could say anything Daniel and the whole club faded into blackness. I surfaced from the dream into stark reality.

Someone was shaking me gently and my eyes flickered open to be confronted with Erik's soft features. I stared to smile but then remembered last night and decided against it. I raised my hand to my forehead and looked around slightly confused. I was still in the car but the door was open and Erik was sitting next to me with a concerned expression. Behind him stood Charles dressed in cream colored pants and a white polo. Next to him was the ginger boy wearing his baggy clothes and sunglasses that were obviously too big for his face.

"What's going on?" I asked pulling away from Erik.

"Your where breathing rapidly and shaking in your sleep." Concern briefly flittered across his face before melting back into a cool mask. "We are stopping for some food, would you like to join us?" I hesitated before answering.

"Sure" Erik didn't offer his hand like he usually would, instead he just stepped back and made his way to the diner without further ado.

We took the backmost table and ordered a plate of chips, hamburgers and sauce to all share. I took the seat next to Charles from where I could see the whole diner in case there were any suspicious signs, and quickly found all the exists in case of an emergency. Ever since I had been on my own these were part of my routine. Where-ever I went I felt as if someone was following me, that Shaw's shadow would be lurking behind ever corner waiting to pounce. Satisfied I looked down at my pale hands and fidgeted with my pink dress as I waited for the food in silence listening to the others talk.

When the food came I would normally grab all I could but this time I kept my small hands fiddling with the soft pink fabric.

"You should eat." I slowly looked up to where the voice had came from, capturing Erik's silver eyes in mine. "You got to keep up your strength." he continued through a mouth full of fries. I hesitated several seconds before taking a handful of fries and dipping them into the barbecue sauce catching a grin from the ginger boy across from me. I didn't bother returning his grin as I devour the fries.

Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye I saw a shadow appear. He stood close to the back door exist and gave me a cheeky grin and wave before disappearing leaving a mist of red where he had once been. My eyes widened and I looked to the three boys who were deep in conversation. I was quick to excuse myself from the table and walked quickly over to the far exist. I looked over my shoulder back at the boys to see if they were looking, but as expected they were still entranced in whatever it was they were talking about. I think it was cars.

"Men." I mumbled and pushed over the heavy metal door that opened to a small car park for the staff. In front of me was the same mutant who had so carelessly dropped me into the ocean. My eyes narrowed and my posture stiffened. "What do you want?" I sneered at him.

"Shaw wants you back." His words were laced with a Hispanic accent. I let out a dry laugh before placing both hands on hips.

"And why would I go back?"

"He did not say details. He says that you shouldn't waste your time with mutants who are working with humans that want to bring down your own species."

"Shaw needs to be brought down, and why would I go back since obviously all you want to do is experiment on me?" I questioned, raising my eyebrow in annoyance.

"That is a question I cannot answer for you." his gaze had that annoyingly knowing look. My already thin patience was depleting fast.

"Well then devil boy, you can either bring Shaw to me or leave." The teleporter scowled at me.

"No, you come." He was pretty impolite, or maybe he too was running out of patience. He made his way towards me, and my muscles tensed for the attack. The moment came, and as always I struck first, a half seconds before he lunged for me. I leapt out and my fist connected with his jaw. The force nocked his head back, but he took it admirably, promptly recovering and pushing me away in anger. He was much stronger then I was and I stumbled backwards, losing my balance in the process. But what I lacked in strength I certainly made up for it in both speed and my height. I skilfully dodged each attempt at me.

I dashed around the side of a car and he mirrored my actions on the other. Soon he disappeared and reappeared on my left side. I jumped up onto the cars bonnet and he teleported right in front of me but I anticipated it and took the advantage thowing myself off the car and knocking him flat on the ground. I landed on his stomach and my hands went around his neck. A playful smile appeared on his lips and I realized that he could now teleport both of us. I scrambled off him before he could he disappeared. I backed away from the car and waited for him to reappear, throwing my back against the cold stone wall.

Suddenly he reappeared next to my side. I made another charge at him, slamming straight into his ribs, but he saw me coming of the corner of his eye and responded instantly by throwing me down onto the concrete, bashing my head in the process. I let out a chocked scream and my vision dimmed slightly but adrenaline drove me back onto my feet. Before I could make another move the back door burst open and through my dizzy eye sight I saw the boys. The mutant took one look at the three of them and then back at me before quickly disappearing.

I dropped to my knees in defeat and looked at the puddle of blood that stained the concrete floor. Erik rushed to my side and brushed aside my black hair to where the wound would be. I raised my fingers and touched it, wincing it pain. My fingers came away sticky.

"What was that? Are you alright?" Erik's voice shook with concern. I looked up at him, but dancing shadows blurred my vision.

"Teleporter working for Shaw. I hit the concrete." I heard Erik mutter a series of swear words before a new hand wrapped around my shaking shoulders. It was Charles. He gave me a quick brotherly kiss on my non injured side and then faced Erik.

"We should get her back to the car and lay her down, but we can't let her sleep until we find out if she has a concussion." Charles said.

I didn't protest when Erik lifted me into his arms and carried me over to where our blue car would be parked. My limp arm rested around Erik's shoulders and my head hung back with defeat.

Someone opened the car doors and Erik carefully set me down and got in next to me. Once he was seated his hand found mine and gripped it tightly. I started to close my eyes and was gently shaken by Charles.

"Don't sleep." Charles said with two fingers on the side of his forehead.

"That won't work Charles, you know I have a telepathic barrier." Charles sighed heavily and shared a brief glance with Erik before going back into the diner leaving me and the two boys.

"I'm sorry Zoe." Erik whispered, "I am so sorry I wasn't there. I should have asked where you were going… But what the hell were you thinking! You think you can just leave me eating fries while you get beat up by Shaw's goons in the back?!" His concern mingled with rage and hurt and things I was too woozy to make sense of.

"I can look after myself thank you" I protested weakly. "Don't blame yourself for someone else's actions." I reached forward and lightly rested my fingers against his cheek. "Erik I..."

"Right, I've managed to get some first aid supplies from the staff. " My eyes shifted from Erik's to Charles and my hand dropped into my lap.

Charles fixed up my head, wiping away the blood and giving me some painkillers before inserting several black stitches, which I requested inside of white. After I was deemed fit to travel Charles and the ginger mutant took the front seats and Erik and I the back. Erik wrapped his brown leather jacket around me and I fell into a deep sleep, Daniel free.

When I woke up my head was resting comfortably against Erik's shoulder and my left arms was slung around his neck. The car stopped and we pulled over outside a cheep looking motel. I looked out the window and pulled away from Erik, stretching whilst taking in the black sky. My head still ached and every other bone seemed to mirror its pain. I scrunched up my face and Erik quickly leaped out of the car and opened my door. I tried to stand, determined not to be carried in like a weakling, but the dizziness threathened to overwhelm me, so I wrapped my arm around his neck and let him slide his arms under my legs.

"It's okay, you can sleep in a minute" Erik said looking down at me as we walked to reception.

"I'm fine, I've been sleeping for basically the whole car ride." He laughed at my annoyed tone, and waited for Charles to open the door to reception allowing us both inside the warm room. "It's okay you can put me down now." Erik looked at me with concern before decided it was safe to carefully place me in a chair. He walked over to join Charles at the check in.

"So how long have you two been together?" the ginger said, as he plopped down next to me, crossing an ankle over his knees.

"Who says were together?" I asked looping my arms over my chest as I looked over at the boys.

" Just the way you two look at each other..."

" We look at each other just like a brother and sister would." I said bitterly and dropped my head to look at my black boots. His eyes widened a fraction with understanding, pity and amusement flicking briefly across his face.

"Well if you ever need someone.." He grinned goofily again, and I wondered if he could take anything seriously.

"Thanks but no thanks." I raised my hands palm up. "By the way what is your name?" I asked.

"Jamie." I nodded and then looked back to Erik.

" Ok, Jamie please, I'm sorry but your really not my type." I gave him an apologetic look before Erik and Charles returned with our room keys and led the way to the place where would be staying overnight.

Overall there were two rooms and Erik and I ended up sharing one of them, due to the fact that Charles tended to toss and turn, but Jamie sleeps like a rock and probably wont wake up. Also due to my not-so-stable condition at the moment, since in case we were attacked I would need someone who would be able to physically defend me, and Erik fit the bill.

Like the rest of the motel it wasn't fancy, but it had all the things needed. There was a worn out carpet, old wooden closest, scattered paintings across the walls, one sad looking window and a single bed. Erik locked the bolt and chain on the door and then sat back on the double bed. I stood with my back against the wall feeling awkward in the obvious tension that surrounded us.

"What are we going to do now?" I asked.

"Sleep." He said getting up and opening both his and my suitcase. He went through mine and pulled out my white pyjama shorts and matching spaghetti top, and proceeded to get out his brown pyjama pants, deciding against a shirt.. "I'll get changed in the bathroom and you can here." I nodded and watched him disappear before pulling my pink dress over my head and kicking off my boots to place on my white pyjama set. Before Erik returned I switched back into my true form and got into the side of the bed that was furtherest from the door. When Erik reappeared he was only wearing brown pants with his muscular chest exposed to my wanting eyes. Erik placed his clothes on the lone chair and climbed into bed. He sat and faced me, slightly caressing my wound.

"I think you'll be fine tomorrow morning, just get some rest." I nodded and sunk down into the cool white sheets.

"Goodnight Erik." I whispered

"Goodnight Zoe."

When I woke up it wasn't light outside, or time to get up. I woke up to see that Erik had somehow found his way into my arms. I stopped breathing. He must have rolled over somehow and slung his arm around my waist, resting his head against my belly. His body lay against mine, warm and comforting.

I knew that he would be tired from the long trip and taking care of me, but I didn't think he would do this in his sleep. Throughout the years I learnt that Erik was the type of guy who slept with one eye open, but now his guard was down and his body unconsciously seeking my own. My cheeks blushed at the thought that what he could want was me, but I quickly discarded the thought as memories from nights before came flooding back.

Slowly and carefully I shifted slightly so that I could sling one arm around Erik and draw his body closer to mine. I knew it was risky but it was worth it if he didn't wake up. And he didn't. If anything he seemed to relax more and tighten his grip. Holding him like this suddenly churned up a sea of emotions. The ache that filled me since that kiss still burned deep within, but at the same time holding him also seemed to go hand in hand with it. As if a piece of me that was once missing was finally restored.

I lost track of time and became completely unaware of how long I stayed with Erik in my arms. It was long enough that sun light leaked through the small window, letting me get a better view of the man in my arms. His beautiful face was so peaceful, the ever permanent worry scowls absent and his soft hair sticking up in all directions. My urge took over and I carefully reached out and ran my fingers through his silky hair. They felt like magic against my pale fingers and sent chills running through my body. I don't know if it was that, or my fingers in his hair, or maybe both that woke him up.

His eyes opened, instantly alert as if there was a predator in the room. I expected him to jump away from me but to my surprise he didn't move. I left my fingers where they were and allowed them to play with locks of his hair. Our gazes locked, so many unvoiced emotion passing between us. Slowly he sat up but didn't pull away. He looked down at me, only a few inches separating us. Erik's eyes betrayed him and at that moment I could tell he wanted to kiss me. A muscle in his jaw clenched from the supressed tension. His hand caressed my wound and then dropped. He leaned in towards me but then caught himself and cast his eyes away, breaking the spell. He let out a heavy breath. I didn't realize I had been holding mine.

Frustration grew deep within me. Why didn't he just kiss me? It was obvious that he wanted to, what could possibly be holding him back. And if he didn't want to then why was he toying with me?I grew even more frustrated, but before I could do anything a soft nock came from the door.

Erik froze and my whole body stiffened. After another nock Erik swung his legs over the bed and made his way to the door, unlocking the dead bolt and chain. He opened the door and in walked Charles and Jamie, both already dressed. Charles wasted no time and came straight to my side, sitting down on the bed and looking over my head wound.

"How are you feeling?" He asked and touched my wound with his soft finger tips. To my surprise I didn't wince and all I felt was the touch of his fingers on my skin.

"Better." I said softly.

"Good, good because we are hitting the road in around 30mintues, so you two best get some breakfast and then we're leaving" Charles said, looking up at Erik, who was already rummaging through my suitcase. He pulled out my favourite black pleated skirt and a white and purple V-neck top. He handed them over to me before going to his and pulling out dark brown pants and a white polo, heading off to the bathroom.

"Um, can I have a little privacy?" I asked looking at the two boys with an amused expression. Charles suddenly looked embarrassed and got up from the bed.

"Of course, we'll be waiting down stairs in the diner." I nodded and waited for both boys to disappear before getting up out of bed and stripped from my pyjamas to put on my outfit for the day.

I was putting on my heavy black boots when Erik emerged from the steamy bathroom looking as gorgeous as ever. I tried not to find his appearance satisfactory but my lips deceived me and pulled into a smile.

"Ready?" He asked, closing his suitcase as well as mine.

"Yup." I stood up still feeling a bit dizzy from yesterday's events. Erik was quickly at my side and grabbed hold of my forearm, steading me.

"Are you sure you're okay?" I met him eyes and gave him a cheeky smile.  
"Erik, all I've done is hit my head, it's nothing that can't be fixed."

We headed down to the breakfast diner, silence falling heavy as neither of us mentioned the morning's events. I was still confused on what Erik wanted from me. Through his eyes it was clear he felt something for me but it frustrated me that all he would allow himself to do was a casual stroke of the cheek or a look of concern. I couldn't help but wonder if this was all our relationship was going to be. A never ending life filled with brief touches and rare confrontations leading to a kiss and then a disagreement.

When we got downstairs, the smell of what seemed like bacon, eggs and freshly cooked bread filled my nose and I prepared myself for a proper meal. Erik and I sat at the far table along with Charles and Jamie, who already had their plates piled up with scrambled eggs and slices of toast. I headed over to the buffet and quickly returned with a plate filled with a large amount of crisp bacon and two slices of toast covered in sweet honey.

"Good morning." Charles said as he carefully placed a forkful of eggs in his mouth, and I made a face of disgust, stick out my tongue. Charles cocked his eyebrow at me as he chewed at the slimy and rubbery substance in his mouth.

"She hates eggs. Shaw forced fed it to her when she tried to starve herself...

"Oh."

"That and it also just tastes horrible." I said and pulled another face, causing Erik to chuckle. We shared a brief glance of happiness before turning our expressions back to normal and looking away quickly. "So boys, what's the plan?" I asked, licking the honey off my fingers.

"Well." Charles began, "I think we should leave in about 15 minutes to get good time on the road, and not stop of at any other places in case of further confrontation with Shaw or his henchmen.

"Wouldn't that be good though?" Everyone stopped eating and looked at Erik. "If we are able to run into them, especially Shaw or the teleporter then it will be quicker to find and kill them, cause them pain for what they have done."

"Killing will not bring you peace Erik." Charles said sternly.

"How do you know Charles? Have you ever tried it?"

"No my friend I have not and will not." The tension rose and became more than just an electric field of emotions between me and Erik, as the boy's minds clashed over the matter. I decided to step in diplomatically.

"Right, get your coats I think we should get going."


End file.
